Arson leaves Greenwood Park bus company on the brink of ruin

A GREENWOOD Park businessman has spoken of his despair after an arson attack on his last three remaining buses has left his business on the brink of closure.

Mahomed Hoosen (77), the owner of Roselite Bus Services,  who has served the residents of Greenwood Park and its surrounds for the last 47 years, said three buses were torched by unknown suspects.

The bus depot, situated on Park Station Road, provided transport for passengers between Greenwood Park and Effingham area to Durban, now houses the shells and wrecks of the buses.

This is the second arson attack on his business, after an incident in 2018 left three buses and a vehicle, used to transport his staff home, were also torched.

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Hoosen, affectionately know to the community as ‘lightie’, said he started out with two buses at the age of 30 and had always put the needs of the community first.

“We’ve never had any problems with anyone and our core focus was serving the community. We often helped residents who needed transport if they had lost loved ones and we never charged them. Many of the customers who made use of our services were residents from the informal settlements and residents in the area. I also kept my fare low to accommodate those in need and I would take money out of my own pocket to keep the business going. This was my only source of income and to see it like this now is very tough,” he said.

One resident, Deborah Herron, described Hoosen’s generosity in her time of need.

“What has happened is extremely sad. The community go way back with Lightie and he was always obliging. He even transported people free of charge to the cemetery and back when my mom passed on a number of years ago and I will always be grateful. I just want to thank him for his many years of service to the community and all the good he did,” Herron said.

No arrests have been made since the attack and a case of arson is being investigated by Greenwood Park SAPS.  

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