ANC wheels out e-tolls as an election ploy

25 July 2018

Newly-elected Gauteng ANC deputy chairperson, Panyaza Lesufi’s announcement that the ANC in Gauteng has resolved to scrap e-tolls should not come as a surprise as elections are just 10 months away.

The ANC has sung this tune more than once since 2014 and as history has shown, these are just empty words.

The ANC government has used scare mongering tactics and intimidation in a desperate attempt to have people pay these toll fees.

Despite this, only 30% of all e-toll bills have been paid.

The effect that the tolls have had on the cost of living in Gauteng has put severe strain on the pockets of all the provinces citizens.

Most of the toll fees collected thus far have been gobbled up by foreign companies in the form of collection and administration fees while very little has been used to repay the bonds raised by the South African Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) to carry out the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP).

Since the idea of e-tolls were first mooted in 2007, the DA has vehemently disagreed with the project.

By admitting that the project has been a failure and should be scrapped, the ANC has endorsed the DA stance on the issue.

The DA has brought a Private Members Bill before Parliament that, if adopted, would ensure that the e-toll system is not repeated elsewhere in the country.

The reality is that the only way to get rid of e-tolls is to vote for change led by a DA-led government.

Issued by John Moodey, DA Gauteng Provincial Leader, 25 July 2018