Taxi operators call for self-regulation

Lindiwe Mozola | Tuesday July 28, 2015 15:48

Seitshero was speaking at the Local Route Service Mini Pitso held here last week at Thapama Hotel. He noted that it takes up to three months or more while one is waiting to receive a permit from the department. As businesspeople he said taxi operators lose profit while waiting for the permits.

Seitshiro also advised the transport ministry to reduce the number of permits a person can hold at a go. “Priority should be given to those who acquire permits for the first time because it is always a hassle to get a permit for the first time.  In many instances those who have permits find themselves competing with those who are competing for permits for the first time.

“The ministry should manage the number of those who are applying for permits for the second time and above so that they do not deny first applicants the opportunity to get permits,” recommended Seitshiro. Lloyd Mujokeri of Francistown Taxi and Combi Association echoed Seitshiro’s words, adding that those who have more than one permit end up selling or renting them, though they denied first applicants an opportunity to own the permits. “They usually sell them for P6,000 which is more than 20 times the money they used to acquire them,” he added. Thabo Modongo who represented the Taxi and Combi drivers from Lobatse said that the authorities should give associations the power to review permits before they are renewed.

“This is the only way we can screen those who do not use their permits to transport people,” he said. He said that this would also insure that they fight piracy. The DRTS Chief Transport Officer Godwin Tlhogo urged members of taxi association across the country to form an umbrella body so that their challenges can be addressed in a consolidated manner.

“Once you form the umbrella body which consist of all taxi associations in the country, your challenges can be easily taken to the relevant ministries and have them solved within a reasonable period of time unlike a situation where each association brings forward its own challenges,” he said.  He added that the umbrella body would come in handy when a review of the Traffic Act starts as the body will be a conduit for ideas between the taxi operators and the ministry during the process of reviewing the act. Tlhogo also complained about taxi owners who acquire permits but do not use them for their intended purposes. He warned that those who abuse their permits risk having them instantly revoked.