Santaco condemns planned taxi strike in Tshwane

The South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) says it will not be supporting a planned taxi strike in Tshwane.

“Following a reported taxi driver strike planned‚ Santaco consulted with its structure in Tshwane which decided the strike cannot be supported as it would not benefit the taxi industry and importantly taxi commuters‚” the association said in a statement.

Reports said the strike was due to last a week.

Santaco said taxi drivers will not be allowed to use taxis to blockade roads and that if they embark on a strike‚ it will not be in the name of the industry.

“Taxi owners in Tshwane have vowed to present themselves in the early hours of [Monday] morning at various taxi locations to ensure that no taxis are taken as part of the strike‚” the association said.

“Taxi drivers have reportedly threatened to harshly punish non-striking drivers. Taxi owners and those stationed at various locations will equally monitor the situation and ensure the safety of non-striking drivers is protected. Santaco hopes commuting services will return to normality soon.”

Santaco apologised to commuters for any inconvenience and said the situation was being handled in the best way possible.