'Mechova' in blue number plates

Dan Mosekaphofu
Correspondent | Wednesday February 27, 2008 00:00

Rows of taxis can be seen at this bus rank waiting for passengers. To these innocent souls, any car that they see at the rank with a blue number plate and names of the permit holder nicely engraved on the sides or doors of this taxi qualifies to be a taxi.

Little do they realise that some of these cars that bear these trademarks or features are not legal taxis but illegal ones that have found their way into the taxi rank by dubious means.

These are 'illegal' blue number plate taxis that continue to litter the streets of this city.

According to the 35-year-old Othata Nthobatsang of Serowe who operates a legal taxi, 'Of late, mechovas have changed tactics. They now use blue numbers just like us'.

Nthobatsang decries the fact that getting blue number plates seems to be very easy for the illegal taxi operators.

'This is despite the fact that there are stipulated laws or regulations that governs the selling and buying of the blue numbers,' he says.

'I still don't understand how these guys get their blue numbers. The requirement and/or procedure is that one should produce his permit when buying the blue number plates,' says the angry Nthobatsang.

The 44-year-old Motshereganyi Timothy echoes Nthobatsang's sentiments. 'The big question is how and where do these guys buy these number plates?'

Timothy says the illegal taxis negatively affect their business. 'They are further reducing the already saturated taxi industry market and surely hitting us where it hurts most,' he lamented.

'We are very grateful for the good work that the police are doing in trying to deal with these problem. They have really stepped up the gear in the fight against mechova and they must surely be commended for that. We just hope that with time they will overcome this problem,' he disclosed with optimism written all over his face.

Francistown Police Station traffic officer, Assistant Superintendent, Dintle Simon, confirmed that they are grappling with the issue of illegal taxis. She also said that mechovas manifest themselves in various forms. 'Mechova taxis appear in many forms. At times we have cases in which cars are not legally registered as taxis but have blue number plates while in other cases the taxi will be registered but the driver will not be having the proper documents or the PSV,' she says.