Bus operators slam Mbalula

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has come under criticism from long-distance, cross-border bus
operators for allegedly twiddling his thumbs while Rome is burning in the ongoing strife at the road freight industry.

Small-scale bus owners who operate in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), have joined the chorus to criticise Mbalula, saying he is acting like outgoing US President Donald Trump by posting irrelevant tweets on social media instead of solving problems in the road freight and foreign bus operators.

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Trump is notorious for his Tweets to ridicule Covid-19, calling it “China virus” despite America leading with 270 000 deaths and 13 million infection cases due to the virus.

Mbalula, on the other hand, congratulated South African-born Trevor Noah on Twitter for hosting the 63rd Grammys.

“We can’t think of a better person to serve as Master of Ceremonies for Music’s Biggest Night,” Mbalula tweeted.

According to the bus operators, Mbalula should be busy trying to find a solution to the violence in the road freight industry and the crisis of permits in the cross-border bus sector.

They threatened to embark on a strike to force Mbalula and his officials to ease the bus operating permit conditions.

They also demanded that the Minister should give them Covid-19 recovery assistance as he did
with the taxi industry.

The operators claimed Mbalula was folding his arms while their buses had come to a standstill. They said the department officials were sending them from pillar to post about the application and renewal of their bus operating permits.

African Unite Borders Bus and Trucks Association chair, Phumudzo Mukhwathi said the department’s road transport agency, dealing with cross-border transportation, kept on diverting them about the application and renewal of their operating licences.

“The agency says anybody who owns a bus can operate as long as they have repatriation permit. Some of us have a daily permit to carry people to Zimbabwe, but they say the daily permit is not allowed,” Mukhwathi said.

Six bus operators, whose vehicles ferried passengers betweenSouth Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi and other SADC countries, claimed the minister ignored their pleas under the economic recovery plan like he did with other sectors such as the taxi industry.

Mbalula’s spokeswoman, Ayanda Allie-Paine had not responded to questions at the time of going
print.

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