Stop wasting our time: The e-tolls torment drags on

The on again/off again e-toll torment, which continues to haunt Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula, was given new life when Gauteng MEC of Transport Jacob Mamabolo said on radio yesterday the provincial transport department was “already living in the post-e-tolls period”.

Except, there was no actual resolution yet for the e-tolls to be scrapped.

“We already believe any announcement is imminent … but [Cabinet] ministers have talked about ‘good news’,” Mamabolo told Stephen Grootes on SAFM about the scrapping former transport ministers Blade Nzimande, Dipuo Peters and Joe Maswanganyi failed to resolve.

“Good news means we are looking to a completely new e-toll dispensation, and we are just waiting for that to be formalised. But where we are, there’s no turning back on e-tolls; e-tolls are a thing of the past and we are just waiting for that to be formalised.”

ALSO READ: Timeline of ‘imminent’ e-tolls saga that began in early 2019

On 10 July, 2019, Cabinet told Mbalula, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni and Gauteng Premier David Makhura to make a plan and sort it out.

Since then the decision has been “imminent”.  Mbalula was supposed to present his ideas to parliament this month, but that also hasn’t happened.

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) CEO Wayne Duvenage said he thinks Mamabolo has let the cat out of the bag.

“I think there is something in that comment,” Duvenage said. “Even though Mamabola is backtracking if you listen to the interview you can hear there is something there.”

Duvenage said it was a combination of organisations like Outa – who broke down a lot of propaganda about government and challenged them – and the civil disobedience campaign by society that had given rise to the demise of the scheme.

“Until it is formally announced, we have got to treat it as a little bit premature,” Duvenage said.

A timeline of the battle over e-tolls in Gauteng. Graphic: Costa Mokola

Economist Mike Schussler said, ultimately, someone has to pay.

“The infrastructure was put in and we didn’t like the cost of it. I vigorously fought against it as well. Whether it is motorists on an e-toll scale or taxpayers to bail out the South African National Roads Agency [Sanral], in one way or another we are going to pay for it,” Schussler said. He said it had unfortunately become a political game.

“It is probably one of the big reasons the ANC could lose the elections,” Schussler said. “It has taken since 2008 – 13 years – to bring this decision around,” he added.

If government bailed out e-tolls before they bailed out South African Airways (SAA), it would make more sense, he said.

“Bailing out Sanral and giving them the money and allowing them to operate and build more roads is not a problem because we need more roads.”

ALSO READ: Forcing e-toll payments will hurt ANC in local government elections – analyst

Schussler added if government was to pay back the money collected from e-tolls over the years, they would have to not only pay back motorists but big business and car rental companies.

“It is a dilemma because if they don’t pay back the money of the people who did comply, next time fewer people will comply because they know they won’t get their money back if the government changes their minds,” Schussler said.

He referred to the Soweto residents who refused to pay their electricity bills and were twice let off the hook.

It has become easier to call for a boycott, he said and warned that people may start boycotting municipal rates and taxes or not paying traffic fines.

“Right now, the country doesn’t have the money to bail out Sanral either, otherwise the rating agencies will view that as negative. Although that alone won’t give us a downgrade, it will be another nail in the coffin for another downgrade,” Schussler said.

– marizkac@citizen.co.za