The Democratic Alliance (DA) has learned this morning that 70 new Ford Ranger vehicles have been blocked by a roadworthy test station in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. These pick-up trucks were allegedly converted to passenger carrying trucks, in a similar fashion to the panel vans that are unlawfully converted into taxis to operate on the country’s roads.
The Department of Transport (DoT) has been aware of this practice and the existence of illegally converted vehicles since 2005 but failed to act decisively by impounding these vehicles, in accordance to the National Land Transport Act. It has also recently emerged that panel vans are also now illegally being converted into ambulances.
The DA has written to Minister Fikile Mbalula to act immediately on this matter as it compromises road safety every day and placing millions of road users in unimaginable life-threatening situations.
The Public Protector (PP) released a report in March this year related to a complaint dating back to 2012. The DA is of the view that had the Public Protector’s report been released sooner, thousands of commuters’ lives would never have been placed at risk on a day to day basis.
What upsets the DA more, is the fact that illegally converted ambulances were not even addressed under remedial action in the report and the trend of un-homologised conversions is not dealt with either.
The fact remains that these Toyota Quantum Taxi’s, ambulances and now also converted passenger carrying Ford Ranger transporters are being “registered” on the Department of Transport’s Natis-system – in what seems to be a legitimate, “over the counter” process. It would seem that adequate regulations and strict manufacturer restrictions in line with the factory-design and usage-purpose are not being administered when registering these vex hikes. These contraventions seem to have been taking place over a period dating back to 2005.
Conversions are only possible through a producer-involved process of homologation which includes rigidity-testing. If these processes are not followed and the DoT continues to fail in acting against illegally converted taxis and ambulances these unroadworthy vehicles will continue to find its way into private and public emergency and health care facilities across South Africa, as well as neighbouring countries like Namibia and Botswana.
The lack of action on the part of the Department as well its seeming failure to implement the Public Protecter’s remedial action will only serve to galvanize the culprits to now finding additional applications like in the case of the 70 Ford Ranger pick-up trucks which were converted to passenger carrying transporters.
The DA sympathises with all those who have been, and still are, exploited in this scandalous abuse. The deliberate by-passing and manipulation of controls and systems at various check points by officials – has led to innocent, unsuspecting fare-paying commuters getting injured, or worse, killed.
Traffic officials and the law enforcement sector should be supported in their efforts to keep our roads safe.