The mass action protest which was scheduled to start today by the taxi industry has been cancelled.
The industry threatened to stop operations on 23 May following the impounding of taxis which are not safe on Johannesburg roads.
All Gauteng law enforcement agencies embarked on Operation Ke Molao (it’s the law) initiative about a week ago to curb lawlessness and reduce the scourge of road crashes.
JMPD spokesperson Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar said that more than 290 vehicles were impounded by Friday. “The operation will continue until we see a massive reduction in road fatalities and accidents,” he said.
He explained that the objective of the operation was to reduce accidents and bad driver behaviour. “We had to take a stand given the number of accidents which occurred recently,” he concluded.
National Taxi Alliance (NTA) spokesperson, Theo Malele, said the protest was not communicated appropriately. “We have been trying to engage the government since Friday but they have been negotiating in a bad faith,” he said.
He explained that they have asked the government to release all the impounded taxis, and for the necessary fines to be paid by owners.
He said if authorities continued to impound taxis, they will call for an urgent meeting on 25 May and draft a programme of action and decide on a protest date.
According to Malele, the government was being unfair given that the taxi industry had been operational for more than 100 years and contributed its fair share in the South African market.
“If they continue impounding our taxis, we will be left with no choice but to take action. I am going to the Gauteng provincial legislature to see if they will squeeze this issue into their discussions,” he concluded.
Details: National Taxi Alliance, 011 331 9706; JMPD, 011 375 5911.
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