Speech delivered by the Minister of Transport, Mr Fikile Mbalula, on the occasion of the 6th National Elective Conference of the South African National Taxi Council held at the Suncity Superbowl on 9 May 2022 at 15h00

9 May 2022

President of SANTACO, Mr Phillip Taaibosch
Members of the National Executive Committee
Provincial Chairpersons
Distinguished delegates

It is my singular honour to address this momentous occasion and critical milestone in the transformation of the taxi industry.  I must thank President Taaibosch and his outgoing leadership collective for maintaining a steady ship, engaging with us robustly but always respectfully even when we did not see eye to eye. 

You have raised the bar in representing the interests and aspirations of the taxi industry in all your engagements with government. 

We have come a long way since the establishment of the National Taxi Task Team in 1995 and the approval of its final recommendations by government in 1997. 

The story of this industry that comes from a past of conflict and violence can never be complete without a reflection on the collective efforts to grow its market share and position it as a preferred mode by the vast majority of commuters.  These efforts themselves have not always been achieved through fair and reasonable means.

The establishment, role and mandate of SANTACO finds its genesis in this blueprint of a taxi industry that is a formidable player in the mainstream economy of South Africa.  The National Taxi Task Team final recommendations were emphatic that leadership structures must be established at National, Provincial and Regional levels, representing the entire taxi industry. 

The leadership structure must represent all types of taxi operations, short distance, long distance and metered taxis at all levels. 

This structure took the form of the South African Taxi Council (SATACO) established in August 1998, which morphed into SANTACO in 2001.  Despite this history, hard questions must be asked as to whether SANTACO has been able to rise to the occasion and assume the mantle of a leadership body whose authority is accepted by all in the industry. 

In attempting to understand why your leadership of the industry is contested, you need to undertake a deep introspection and look at your own conduct as a body.  Perhaps those who contest your leadership see you as their peer, just another Association with aspirations to lead the industry.  Has SANTACO been able to shed characteristics that make its conduct to be similar to that of an Association rather than a Council that represents the interests and aspirations of every operator?

At the National Taxi Lekgotla, we agreed that the industry leadership structure must give expression to full and fair representation of the industry.  This in effect means that such representation should not be subjected to barriers to entry such as affiliation or membership.

In this context SANTACO must undertake its final transformation into a truly representative industry leadership structure through an inclusive, transparent and consultative manner.

I have no doubt that we all agree that unity of the taxi industry is sacrosanct, if it is to play a meaningful role, not only in growing your sector, but also in contributing to South Africa’s economy.  It can never be acceptable that the barrel of a gun determines who operates what route and who may compete.  The violence that continues to characterize taxi operations across the country is a symptom of a leadership vacuum. 

Step up to the plate, reign in your members and deal harshly with those who unleash violence as a solution to problems.  We will not hesitate to throw the book at them and take away their operating licences and close affected routes.

The 2020 National Travel Household Survey reveals that the general usage patterns of public transport has changed significantly between 2013 and 2020. There has been a general increase in those who used a taxi, from 9,8 million in 2013 to 11,4 mMillion in 2020.

It is equally important to note that nationally, almost 8% of households indicated that taxis were too expensive.

Facilities at the taxi rank and taxi fare remained the highest reason for dissatisfaction with minibus taxi services among South African households. In 2020, more than half of these households (56,9%) were dissatisfied with the facilities at the taxi rank.

Today the taxi industry continues to play an important role in South Africa’s economy with approximately 200,000 vehicles employing in the region of 300,000 drivers and at least another 250,000 people, who play the role of either working as washers, vendors or taxi marshals within the industry.

We estimate that this industry generates in excess of R50 billion in revenue annually, with a market share of over 68%, ensuring that commuters reach workplaces, institutions of learning, healthcare and centres of economic activity and social amenities.

Despite the enormous market presence of the taxi industry, it is yet to harness its economic prowess and positively contribute towards increasing the transport sector contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product.  I will be doing disservice to this leadership collective under the able leadership of President if I did not acknowledge the ground-breaking strides they have made in unlocking economic opportunities for the benefit of the industry. 

The engagements with SALGA on infrastructure development around public transport interchanges and taxi ranks is an important initiative that must be supported and given impetus.

The new leadership that emerges from this Conference will have its work cut out for it.  I have no doubt that the calibre of men and women who will be elected will rise to the occasion and work with us to implement what we agreed to at the National Taxi Lekgotla.  I am equally hopeful, that they will not shy away from providing decisive leadership that will position SANTACO as a leadership body that continues to enjoy government recognition as such and equally engage with us without fear or favour when representing the aspirations of the industry.

It is equally my expectation that in order to reap the rewards of economic opportunities, you will lead from the front in eradicating the scourge of violence and conflict that currently characterizes industry operations.

We remain on track to achieve formalization of the industry both in terms of entrenching democratic practice from Association level to the National Council and in terms commercial activity.  We can no longer afford protracted conversations, but should have a singular focus on implementation.  The key commitment we have made in this regard is to enable partial self-regulation where SANTACO plays a key role as a custodian of the Standard Constitution and Code of Conduct with a mandate to regulate conduct of members and Associations.

Regulating the industry remains an important cornerstone of the transformation process.  We have committed to refining the operating licence regime and work with municipalities to ensure that their Integrated Transport Plan are up-to-date and form the basis for the issuing of any new operating licences. 

We have agreed to the declaration of a moratorium in order to address the current challenges that give rise to saturation of routes and proliferation of illegal operators.  We are aware that some Associations actively recruit illegal operators as a tactic to strong-arm legal operators and drive them out of their routes in some areas.  This is not acceptable conduct and law enforcement authorities will come down hard on those who are found to be peddling this practice.  Dedicated public transport law enforcement will constitute a critical pillar of our strengthened regulatory framework, with rules applied fairly and uniformly across the country.

Unlocking economic opportunities and enabling the industry’s economic participation in the mainstream economy remains an important part of transforming the industry into a formidable economic player.  We have been unequivocal in our commitment to introduce a Subsidy Policy that recognises the role of the taxi industry and benefits it as such.  The process is at an advanced stage and SANTACO must engage with the draft Policy document before this is finalised for implementation.  We anticipate to place before Cabinet the draft Policy in June 2022 for consultation.

Equally, the re-imagination of the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme entails unlocking the economic value chain for the benefit of the industry.  Government has invested a significant amount of money in the Programme, with R5 billion having been disbursed since its inception in 2006.  The industry must take advantage of this investment and create a multiplier-effect in the economic value chain.  Over the last year we have significantly underspent on the scrapping allowance because the uptake is very far from what we anticipate.  This is an unacceptable state of affairs as it creates the impression that the industry is not interested in this programme. 

This starts with allocating the 60% equity in the Taxi Recapitalisation South Africa, enabling the industry to participate in commercial activity and reap dividends from such investments.  Participation in any commercial venture or undertaking any economic activity using public funds is subject to a condition that the benefits from such investments must accrue to every operator irrespective of affiliation.

We have also extended the period for the disbursement of the COVID-19 Taxi Relief Fund to 31 March 2023.  SANTACO must work with us to ensure that every operator who meets the requirements receive their fair share of the fund.  

As the new leadership assumes office, we must sit around the table and agree on a plan that will enable us to ramp up the numbers while creating opportunities for the industry.  We are equally giving consideration to introducing cut-off deadlines for applications for scrapping, starting with the panel vans that were illegally modified and reported on by the Public Protector.

We have made some headway in the implementation of the National Taxi Lekgotla resolutions through the work partly undertaken by the Joint Technical Task Team (JTTT). 

There has been agreement on the implementation of most of the resolutions. We are moving with speed in the implementation of those resolution that fall within the ambit of government responsibility such as supporting municipalities with planning in order to resolve the impasse in the issuing of operating licences.

I have appointed a Panel of Eminent Persons, who will work with your leadership to develop a sustainable Unity & Leadership Framework for the industry.  Their mandate is to lead discussions on unity and leadership and work with you to find a lasting solution and bring stability.  The mandate of the PEP is to:

Meaningfully consult stakeholders and key role-players within the industry as a means of forging relationships that support unity within the taxi industry;

Critically analyse the historical and current status of unity within the taxi industry to find a workable and lasting solution to the ongoing disputes to bring stability;

Explore various options and modalities on how the taxi industry could be unified under a single body;

Provide a long-term strategic direction on how unity in the industry could be maintained within democratic confines;

Advise the Minister on the design of an immediate, short to long term implementation plan.

In conclusion, it is my hope that the Conference will engage with the critical issues I have raised in order to ensure that the new leadership that emerges has a clear and decisive mandate to enable SANTACO to play its role as an industry representative leadership body. 

I wish you well in your deliberations and I am looking forward to engaging with your resolutions.

I thank you. 

Issued by Department of Transport, 9 May 2022