Govt cannot be scared of taxi industry, says Mamabolo
Gauteng Transport MEC Jacob Mamabolo says there is a need to dispel the notion that government is afraid of the taxi industry.
He was speaking at the launch of the Covid-19 taxi ranks support committees and the taxi rank operations app.
Mamabolo said the committees is a first step in formalising the taxi industry, something which he admitted should have happened earlier.
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"As government historically have not played our part and the taxi industry has been left to itself and the culture of the laws of the jungle emerged. That's why you see problems in the industry and the rule of the barrel of the gun.
"There's no way we can be scared of the taxi industry. The issue here that we are missing is that government has simply acknowledged the challenges of the taxi industry.”
Mamabolo said while government sometimes contributes to the perception that it fears taxi bosses, it is something that needs to change.
"We have signed an agreement with them (provincial associations) two weeks ago. The agreement says the taxi industry in Gauteng will second the provincial government, taxi rank managers, marshals to help us to join hands to work together as the president has said.
"We agreed to work together to make formal, controlled and to make consistent but to also make sure that we can be able to account and have proper accountability.
"So the taxi rank committee is a mechanism of control. It is a mechanism to formalise our activities.”