More trains burned: Hawks need to step in

As 18 more train carriages burn (initial reports indicate it was intentional) and thousands of commuters suffer the consequences of not being able to get to work and school on time, and jobs are lost, the people in charge show no plan of action as nobody is held accountable for this economic sabotage. Read more below:

Today I will be writing to President Cyril Ramaphosa requesting that the Hawks be tasked with establishing a special unit to investigate the burning of trains in Cape Town.

Over the past three years, more than 140 train carriages, which make up over 40 train sets have been burnt in several separate incidents yet not a single person has been prosecuted. One person deemed to be mentally unfit was arrested some months ago, but other than that the South African Police Services (SAPS) detective services have failed the people of this city.

Our rail service is a shadow of its former self and as hundreds of thousands of former rail commuters abandon the trains, we see our roads clog up with more cars, buses and taxis. PRASA, Metrorail and SAPS need to get their house in order. We cannot continue to allow their failures to impact the residents of this city.

If those managing the rail service do not want to run the railway, then hand it over to those who have shown they can govern effectively. Our residents deserve better.

Statement issued by Executive Mayor Dan Plato, City of Cape Town, 28 November 2019

We call upon organs of civil society, which include organisations like United Commuters’ Voice and #Unite Behind and many others, to champion the campaign against criminality in our railways. The duty to improve our commuter rail service is a collective one. pic.twitter.com/wgND9NJdjI

— Minister of Transport |Mr Fix (@MbalulaFikile) November 28, 2019