Wednesday is just a few hours away, and the Western Cape government is determined that taxi operators should not go on strike. What better way to see to that than by meeting the operators to have issues resolved?
Ricardo Mckenzie, newly elected Mobility MEC for Cape Town, is keen to avert the planned stay-at-home by transporters and has called an urgent meeting with the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO).
SANTACO’s grouse – the reason it has asked its members to park their buses and strike on Wednesday – stems from what it calls the unfair and constant impounding of vehicles by the authorities over traffic violations while drivers wait for operating licenses.
While the MEC called for an emergency meeting with SANTACO, Western Cape premier Alan Winde is also reaching out to transporters to ensure the strike is averted. According to the premier, the SANTACO should engage the authorities for an amicable resolution, as blocking the economy at this point isn’t good for the Cape.
With just hours to Wednesday, it will be interesting to see whether the strike would still go on or whether the SANTACO will urge its members to continue their transport business as usual, For now, fingers crossed.
