eMBALENHLE – Mr Philip Taaibosch, president of Santaco, said the death of the three taxi operators who were shot in the recent protest, will not be in vain.
He was addressing hundreds of mourners who were gathered at Blue Rank for the memorial service of the taxi operators who lost their lives.
Mr Taaibosch alleged that one of the deceased was dragged from under the taxi where he was hiding, then handcuffed and shot.
Mr Taaibosch sent a strong message to the police and said they should not test their patience.
“If we were the taxi industry of the past, we would have retaliated. Do not take us back to that era.
“Do not test our patience, we have over the years proved that we are no longer violent and have transformed this industry into a professional business.
“We are also calling on Sasol to take us serious, for a long time they have been promoting apartheid buses.
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“If they continue undermining us, we will mobilise and I will call on every association in the country to converge at your gates until we get what we want.”
He said they don’t want to stop buses from operating, but they are fighting for equity.
He instructed Mr Fanyana Sibanyoni, chairman for Vukta, to continue engaging with Sasol and to leave Megabus alone.
Grief was written on Mr Sibanyoni’s face and he could not hold back the tears when he described how the taxi operators were shot.
He expressed his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families.
Mr Sibanyoni voiced his disappointment in the political leadership and the police.
He said the taxi operators were brutally killed by those who were suppose to protect them.
The protest gained momentum and the next day turned violent, resulting in one police officer being shot and three taxi operators killed.
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) will determine how the taxi drivers died.
Police arrested 29 suspects in connection with the attempted murder of a policeman, public violence and malicious damage to state property.
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