WATCH | Pain at the petrol pump

Motorists rushing to fill up their tanks before the budget-busting fuel price hike shared some of their pain at the pumps in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

According to the latest increase announced by the department of energy‚ the price of unleaded 93 petrol will rise by 99c‚ unleaded 95 by R1 and diesel by R1.24. Illuminating paraffin will cost an additional R1.04 and liquefied petroleum gas by R1.79.

The price hike comes into effect at midnight on Tuesday.

TimesLIVE visited an Engen Garage in Parktown‚ where queues were starting to form from early in the day as motorists tried to eke out whatever saving they could before the increase kicked in.

Pensioner Kenneth Sibisi said: “This is nonsense. These increases are just a way of stealing money. They want to compensate for the damage that Gupta family did. The standard of living is getting very high. I do not have a budget for this thing. I am unemployed and have to survive on R1‚600 monthly.”

Sibisi added that citizens needed to lobby for a change of government because there were not proper plans in place to combat the fuel hikes.

Luai Alsaif‚ a businessman involved in the construction industry‚ said‚ “We spend most of the time on the road. The cost of materials and travelling will increase. We can’t afford to overcharge our customers‚ we might find ourselves out of business as a result‚ we might have to reduce our staff.”

Speaking about his own budget‚ he said: “Everything is just expensive.”

But he planned to drastically cut down on unnecessary and luxury expenses.

Businesswoman and consultant Sinawo Poswayo said‚ “These increases are problematic. Business is going to suffer big time. It’s unfortunate.”

Poswayo said there were no alternative ways for her to save money.

“Driving is no longer a luxury‚ we must get at work on time and taxis are just not an option. We are dealing with clients and we must deliver so it’s a mess‚” she added.

Long distance transport provider Bhekithemba Dlamini said‚ “This is going to damage our business. Customers will expect to pay the same amount‚ but we will be losing money.”

He added that increasing prices would be risky as they were likely to lose customers.

Azingce Mbasane‚ a second year student‚ shared similar frustrations – and said he would have to cut down on entertainment.

“I rely on my parents’ allowance and I know they will not increase it anytime soon. This means I would have to cut down on my entertainment budget. No more lunches or parties.”