Pretoria - While the country’s only licence printing machine is once again out of order, AfriForum is gearing-up for its legal challenge in August, which deals with the expiry of driving licence cards.
According to the Department of Transport, the machine broke down and a part had to be replaced by the original manufacturer.
AfriForum will be in the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, on August 7 and 8 to demand, among others, a declaratory order stating that the five-year validity period of driving licences is unconstitutional.
It will also ask for all fines that have been issued for expired licences be declared unconstitutional.
According to Ernst van Zyl, campaign officer for strategy and content at AfriForum, the least the government can do is to grant a grace period to those who are now again victims of the government’s poor planning.
“This inept government doesn’t even have the foresight to invest in a second printing machine for licence cards. I find it hard to believe that the global supply of this essential piece of equipment is at zero.”
He said these and other aggravating circumstances were precisely why AfriForum was once again standing up for the public, to save motorists from this circus. “Motorists should not be penalised or fined for not being in possession of a renewed driving licence card because no such penalty exists,” he said.
AfriForum wants the requirement for driving licence cards to be renewed every five years be declared invalid and reviewed.
The organisation said that from a legal perspective, the National Road Traffic Act and regulations were too vague to be workable.
AfriForum will argue that the legislation does not clearly distinguish between a “driving licence” and a “driving licence card”.
Neither does it explicitly state that motorists must apply for new licence cards upon expiry. It does not even state that it is a crime to drive with an expired licence card nor does it prescribe any fines, penalties, or sanctions, AfriForum said.
“The legislation is not clear, concise, and internally harmonious enough to enable the general public to know with a degree of certainty what is expected of them.
“The government cannot punish members of the public if it cannot clearly show what law is being transgressed. Any such punishment amounts to a violation of rights,” Reiner Duvenage, campaign officer for strategy and content at AfriForum, earlier said.
It will be argued that from a practical standpoint, the department’s well-documented administrative, operational and financial struggles make it unfeasible, unreasonable and irrational to require drivers to renew their licence cards every five years.
The application further stresses that many countries worldwide opt for a licence card system that does not require such frequent renewals.
“It is outrageous that there appears to be no legislation validating the requirement for driving licence cards to be renewed every five years.
“If our application is successful, it would mean that it has been wrongfully punishing the public for years.
“This could be a watershed case in the history of SA,” Duvenage said.
Pretoria News