CAPE TOWN - Western Cape MEC for transport and public works, Daylin Mitchells has called on the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to prioritise extortion cases in the taxi industry as his office has been inundated with complaints.
Mitchell said the complaints came from e-hailing operators and private victims of extortion who have been harassed by taxi operators and have had their vehicles impounded when they operate in certain communities and at some shopping malls.
He said he has engaged e-hailing and taxi industry leadership and asked that they condemn the criminal acts by their members.
“These acts are criminal and I will use all legal avenues available to me to bring these actions to an end. When people linked to the taxi industry are involved in criminal acts such as extortion, intimidation and murder, my Department plays a clear supporting role to the SAPS and the NPA, whose mandate it is to ensure that the rule of law is applied.
“We have therefore escalated all reports of these serious crimes to the SAPS and the NPA with the request that these cases be prioritised.
“If any association or operator registered with the Provincial Taxi Registrar is found guilty of such a criminal act in a Court of Law, the Registrar and the Provincial Regulatory Entity may act to de-register such associations or operators and withdraw operating licences of individual owners,” Mitchell said.
He said he will not allow criminals to hold the province’s transport system to ransom as commuters have the right to choose their transport of choice and not be harassed and intimidated when they use alternative modes of public transport.
“Leaders of the minibus taxi industry must come out strongly against the ongoing criminal acts of extortion by their members. This is enough. Extortion will no longer be tolerated,” Mitchell added.