By More Matshediso
BLOEMFONTEIN – From playing cat-and-mouse with the police during apartheid days, the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) in the Free State region has scored a first in the taxi industry nationally by buying its own property worth R2 million from proceeds of their scrapped vehicles.
The new SANTACO house still needed to be renovated and be re-designed as an office since it was initially built as a residency.
No one can forget the dark days when black-owned taxis could not ply national or provincial roads. Drivers had to seek rural roads where police were unlikely to prowl and arrest them. If they got caught, their vehicles would be impounded and confiscated by the state.
“The industry has come a long way – spanning the dark days when legislation did not permit blacks to own taxis or participate in the transportation of commuters and travellers. The majority of passengers have always been black but blacks were not allowed to transport their own people,” noted the MEC for Police, Roads and Transport Butana Komphela when he officially opened the new SANTACO house in Bayswater, Bloemfontein.
He said he could still vividly remember the challenges that the drivers faced but somehow won the war decisively. Their survival tactic led to the proverbial name Maja Ka thata – “those who hustle to eat”, which still exists to date. “The current government is doing everything possible to regulate this industry so that violent conflicts do not recur,” said Komphela.
He said he felt duty bound to support SANTACO and sponsor the Provincial Taxi Council (PTC) with five brand new vehicles in the past and was seriously considering doubling that number if he got the assurance that members would make sure that there are no fatalities involving taxis during this coming season and beyond.
But National general secretary of SANTACO, Phillip Taaibosch blamed disloyal traffic officers that do not respect their work and the taxi industry for the carnage and piracy. He said some traffic officers receive bribes from members of the taxi association that have two illegal licenses and this encouraged piracy within the industry.
“Pirates could be convicted only if we provide necessary information to the traffic officers,” said Taaibosch. “The first industry of taxi association was born in the Free State. Today we should be asking why SANTACO in not forming a SADC taxi association and the question should rise from both Lesotho and Free State region.”
The provincial general secretary of SANTACO, Maleho Mmolotsane said the challenges that SANTACO faced from time to time revolved around 80 per cent of commuters complaining about being ill-treated by taxi drivers but only 20 per cent of drivers ever lodge complains against commuters.
“Currently we are about to open a call centre in Free State that will assist us to evaluate our conduct and resolve the challenges within the industry, especially driver-commuter relations.
The call centre will be operating in the new SANTACO premises,” Mmolotsane said. Office bearers of the board of the new corporate business of SANTACO are Daki Qumbu, Puleng Motshwane, Nanto Bango, Zachariah Kunupi, Moeketsi Majoe, Medupi Mofokeng, Marius van Rensburg and Silindokuhle Tsotso.
“Rebokamoso is the corporate part of SANTACO under the Provincial Taxi Council (PTC) which comprises of office bearers who are not necessarily original members of SANTACO but have different types of expertise that will help to run the business professionally.
“This makes it different from previous business entities of SANTACO that were administered by unprofessional board members and has now failed,” said Daki Qumbu, Provincial chairperson of SANTACO and a board member.