Pretoria – The Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport, Ismail Vadi, has condemned Sunday’s fatal shooting of two taxi drivers at the Mall of Africa.
The MEC expressed his condolences to the families, friends and loved ones of the victims.
“We are deeply disappointed that the shootings occurred just a few days after the Gauteng Provincial Government held a successful Taxi Indaba, where issues relating to the taxi industry and taxi violence were discussed.
“Government has appointed four senior religious leaders from the South African Council of Churches in an effort to broker an agreement between the Alexandra Taxi Association and ARMSTA [Alexandra, Randburg, Midrand and Sandton Taxi Association].
“We urge the interested parties to continue with efforts to resolve disputes peacefully. Government will not be deterred by dark and hidden forces using violence to derail efforts aimed at the restoration of peace and good relationships between the two associations,” MEC Vadi said.
Strike suspended
Meanwhile, MEC Vadi commended the South African National Taxi Council (Gauteng) for suspending its strike action, which was set to take place today.
“We commend the responsible leadership displayed by SANTACO (Gauteng). Their decision to call off the planned strike after discussions with the Premier shows commitment to resolving their concerns in a constructive manner.
“We are confident that the concerns of the industry will be addressed fully at the Taxi Summit set to take place later this month,” he said. - SAnews.gov.za
