COMMENT
Of schools and dope
and taxi ranks …
A
t the time of writing, the South African National Taxi
Council (Santaco) had just started yet another taxi
strike, this time in the Eastern Cape. The strike is
stranding thousands of commuters as the council airs its beef
with the provincial Transport MEC Weziwe Tikana, whom, they
said, is “not taking the taxi industry seriously”.
While this was fuelled (sorry for the pun) by the ever-escalating
price of petrol and diesel, other issues were also raised, including
the shocking state of the roads, commuters opting to hike instead
of catching taxis, and the laborious process of obtaining a
Professional Driving Permit (PrDP), with the latter raising the
comment from Santaco that it feels its drivers are being exploited.
All that aside, it is generally agreed that the escalation of the
issue that must be addressed — urgently. We are in a recession
after all.
Also concerning, as a by-product of the fuel hike, is that this
strike comes just as schools are writing exams. As Santaco
chairperson of the region, Lungiswa Mfanamabija, warned, “No
fuel price will damage any hope of an economic recovery and is an
The future is uncertain with the ever-present chaos around the country.
one will be travelling on that particular day, no one is going to Maybe it was this mayhem, brought about by the rising fuel prices,
school or work.” that galvanised the government into taking a sudden stand on the
Local media reported that Santaco had warned that any buses
seen carrying school children would be stopped.
We cannot afford to rope innocent pupils into this disruption,
more so as South Africa is on the precipice of an educational
abyss. From once being heralded as the country with the highest
(private) use of dagga. ‘Going green’ now has an entirely new
meaning … but I digress. Was this announcement to serve as a
distraction away from the fact that the government has failed to do
anything about stabilising fuel prices?
I don’t know; it is becoming increasingly clouded — and that has
education on the continent, we have slipped, nay plummeted, to little to do with being on a (previously illegal) drug. It’s definitely
the bottom of the list, with pupils in primary schools barely able to becoming a case of ‘smoke and mirrors’ as we stumble into the
read, let alone write. By the time they are shoved into the next last quarter of the year. It will be interesting to see if we manage to
year (they don’t ‘pass’, in the true meaning of the word — let’s be climb out of this recession,
realistic here), they take their educational deficit into their high doped or not. In fact, I am
school years. This has resulted in not only a significant dropping sure usage will increase, if
out of high school and not achieving a senior school certificate, but not to serve anything other
ultimately puts the onus on the taxpayer to support a growing, than to dull the senses about
jobless population, once again. what is happening around us.
It is therefore very concerning that the taxi association is So, on that taxiing — and
playing a pivotal role in exacerbating this scenario by preventing rather clouded — note, I say a
those who will become the country’s future leaders from attending fond farewell to Plant
school. We seriously do not want another Zuma heading the Equipment & Hire and wish
country, honestly now, do we? whoever takes my place the
Mind you, the government should use its learned self to do
best of luck.
something about the fuel price, which lies at the core issue in this
case. How is it that our neighbouring, ‘poorer’ countries can sell Kim
fuel at lower prices than South Africa? Editor
www.plantonline.co.za
NOVEMBER 2018
1