Question NW732 to the Minister of Transport

Reply:

The Department has collaborated and supported the Eastern Cape province in dealing with this matter. It should be stated that in terms of section 85 of the National Land Transport Act No 5 of 2009, the MEC is the enforcement authority responsible for land transport law enforcement and he intended to issue a notice indicating the intention to invoke section 91 of the Act, which includes closing down the affected taxi ranks. Ordinarily, the role of dealing with violence and ensuring safety within the taxi industry is for SAPS and other law enforcement agencies and the Department is always in support of those endeavours. As a result, the Department availed itself and participated in a high-level meeting called by the Minister of Police on 25 January 2024 to explore a number of possible interventions to address this matter. The meeting was attended by the Minister of Police, Minister of Transport, Premier of the Eastern Cape, MEC for Transport Eastern Cape, amongst others. The meeting resolved that SAPS and DOT should investigate and identify police officers who are taxi operators and submit names to DOT for verification. It was further resolved that law enforcement must ensure that all illegal operators in the area are dealt with in terms of the law.