Taxi bosses demand children use their services to get to school

Many children in Masiphumelele get to school using scholar transport operators. But a letter circulated in the township threatens that this has to stop by September. Photo: Sandiso Phaliso

• A letter on a taxi association letterhead, CATA, has been distributed in Masiphumelele, Cape Town.
• It says that children older than 11 must start using taxis to get to school, not scholar transport operators.
• Scholar transport is much cheaper than standard taxi fares and parents believe it to be safer than using taxis as well.

A letter threatening scholar transport operators not to pick up children in Masiphumelele, Fish Hoek from next month has caused anxiety among scholar drivers and parents.

The letter, dated 13 August 2024, is on a letterhead of the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association (CATA) Masiphumelele branch. It includes contact numbers of two of its executive committee members. GroundUp was told the letter was distributed door-to-door in the township.

It states that scholar transport operators must stop lifting learners older than 11 during the week, and on weekends they should only operate in Masiphumelele, not outside the area.

The deadline not to pick up children is from 1 September 2024.

But the Western Cape Transport department told GroundUp they were engaging the Masiphumelele CATA branch and were hopeful this matter would be resolved by the letter’s deadline.

However, the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) says it has investigated the origins of the letter and that the Masiphumelele CATA branch has denied writing and distributing such a letter.

This is the letter that is being circulated. It is written in isiXhoa. Here is a translation:
13 August 2024
Greetings members that transport children to school and staff members to work.
As the organization Masitha we have a plea that all cars that transport school children must do so only for the ages of 10 year old downwards.
Children who are eleven years old and upward must go the taxi rank to board a taxi to their destinations. We want this to happen starting from 1 September.
We are also pleading that cars that transport children to school must not take special trips that are going beyond the demarcation of Masiphumelele on weekends.
We would appreciate us working together.
Warm regards
Masitha
For further information contact:
1. Mr V. Manisha - 0767363276
2. Mr M Gazi - 0784363126

SANTACO Western Cape spokesperson Makhosandile Tumana told GroundUp that the association “would like to apologize to the parents of the affected school children”.

“CATA region, as well as us, were not aware of the circulating letter and we do not promote such letters. With that matter, we have reached out to the CATA president regarding this matter,” said Tumana.

SANTACO Western Cape chairperson Mandla Hermanus said the association has received numerous inquiries about the letter.

“As SANTACO, we have engaged with the CATA Regional Taxi Council to establish the veracity of the letter. We further engaged the chairperson of the primary association in Masiphumelele, who has assured SANTACO Western Cape that there is no truth in the contents of the letter that is in circulation,” said Hermanus.

We attempted twice to contact the numbers next to the two signatories, V Manishi and M Gazi, on the letter. But no one answered.

Western Cape Transport Department spokesperson Hugo Geldenhuys said between now and the deadline on the letter “there must be a solution”.

He said pupils should not be disrupted and intimidated when going to school. “The role players are still trying to establish what is meant by this letter. Everyone needs to remain focused on the wellbeing of the kids and this whole situation will be solved in the best interest of the children,” said Geldenhyus.

Parent Tembeka Sigcawu, whose three young children attend school outside Masiphumelele and uses scholar transport, told GroundUp she feared for her children’s safety after receiving the letter. Her oldest is 12.

“My children are too young to use public transport on their own without supervision. I use the services of a scholar transport because it takes the children at their doorstep and drops them directly at their schools. Parents should have a right to choose their own mode of transport for their children,” she said.

“It’s even cheaper to use scholar transport than the taxis,” she said.

A scholar transport driver, who refused to provide a name for fear of intimidation, said he and other drivers and owners were shocked to learn about the letter.

“We were not consulted about this letter and should this continue, we would be out of business. We believe this has been done because of internal factions within the Masiphumelele taxi association because there are taxi bosses who transport both scholars and residents, and they wanted their members to do one, not both,” he said.

GroundUp has learned that it costs some parents R180 a month to use scholar transport from Masiphumelele to the Wynberg region, compared to a R1,000 when using minibus taxis.

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