Police officer attacked and gun stolen during e-hailing drivers’ strike

After promising that it would be peaceful, the protest by e-hailing drivers on Tuesday turned violent when a group of drivers disarmed and injured a police officer at the Union Buildings.

Angry e-hailing drivers took to the streets on Tuesday in a planned three-day strike across Gauteng. The protest went ahead despite last-minute negotiations on Monday between the Gauteng MEC of Transport and Unity in Diversity (UID).

The drivers switched off their apps on Tuesday in protest against what they call exploitation from companies such as Uber, Bolt, and Didi and have called on the government to step in and regulate the industry.

The protest took a violent turn at the Union Buildings when some of the drivers reportedly mistook an off-duty policeman for a fellow e-hailing driver. The officer was not in uniform and was driving an unmarked Toyota Corolla – a car often used by e-hailing drivers.

“These individuals stopped an unmarked police vehicle and injured the police officer and took his firearm,” the Public Private Transport Association’s Vhatuk’ Mbelegwa said.

Mbelegwa said the leaders intervened and recovered the firearm and handed it over to police.

ALSO READ: Uber strike: Drivers from e-hailing companies to down tools this week

On Monday the Gauteng Transport MEC Jacob Mamabolo, along with officials from the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport, met with the action group representing the e-hailing driver partners to discuss the planned strike.

The drivers proceeded with the protest and handed over a memorandum at the Department of Trade and Industry as well as at the Union Buildings.

Their demands included better earning rates and increased safety.

E-hailing driver Thembuluwo Rasirubo said they don’t feel safe on the job.

“We don’t have support from a union or anything when the taxi industry takes our money. I have a family to support and I depend on this business to support us,” he said.

Rasirubo also said the government should reduce the petrol price and subsidise drivers who were being exploited.

Another driver, who asked to remain anonymous out of fear of being targeted, said the drivers needed urgent protection. He said between December and February, eight drivers have been killed and one was still missing.

“We need cameras to protect us and the commuters. We are getting killed daily,” he said.

Sinondala Mugimela said the drivers also want a bigger share of the fee that the e-hailing companies charge per kilometre.

“We want R12 or R13 a kilometre, not R8. We can’t live on the R18 we make per two kilometres,” Mugimela said.

Justice Sibi said the e-hailing service had to be regulated to stop the alleged exploitation.

Sibi said other issues included the verification of customers and the regulation of passengers paying per person and not four people riding along for R8 a kilometre.

“There are also minors opening accounts at these companies. If they don’t pay us, who is being held accountable,” he said.

Sibi said the companies must do away with the “evil contracts”. 

He said some drivers were being charged over R8,000 a month to drive a Toyota.

“They are forcing us to take cars and expecting us to pay it off in three years, how is that possible with those ridiculous prices,” he asked.

Mugimela said they were very angry.

“Things are bad, we are losing money on the high petrol price,” he said.

Sibi said the base fare was also too low and needed to increase.

“Companies are paying us R4 as a base fare and R4.20 per kilometre,” he said.

“In 2013 to fill up a 45-litre tank was R596 and today it’s R1,145,” he added.

He said they were earning peanuts while the price of everything else, from petrol prices to living expenses, has increased.

“We cannot survive with those prices. It’s ridiculous,” he said.

marizkac@citizen.co.za

NOW READ: Mamabolo urges e-hailing drivers to call off three-day national shutdown