Finally Cosatu is doing something useful

Y'all Qaeda

Y'all Qaeda

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http://news.za.msn.com/cosatu-to-strike-over-tolling


"If there is no change...we shall be planning marches, demonstrations, pickets and stayaways, and taking strike action," spokesman Patrick Craven said in a statement on Thursday.

The Congress of SA Trade Unions expressed anger over Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin's announcement earlier in the day that Cabinet had approved reduced toll tariffs for the GFIP phase A1.

Craven said: "Government earlier promised it would consult with the public before charging tolls.

"Yet at the only meeting to which Cosatu Gauteng was invited, they were simply told that the tolls were going ahead. That is not consultation!"

Cravin contended that the widespread opposition to the proposal had been ignored, and that it would impose a huge burden on road users.

Last week, the Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa) said it would join Cosatu in a tolling strike if it went ahead.

"The open road tolling system is aimed at consolidating the privatisation of our national roads and this simply cannot be allowed to happen," said general secretary Dennis George at the time.

"Government cannot forgo their responsibility of maintaining the country's infrastructure and then unilaterally decide to pass on these costs to taxpayers. Consultation with the social partners must be made a priority."

Earlier, Automobile Association (AA) spokesman Gary Ronald said it appeared that all intentions of a fund to alleviate tolling had disappeared, leaving the public to foot the bill.

"The questions was - now what?" he asked in a statement.

While industry as a whole now waited for the SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) to announce the date tolling would begin, the AA did not see the implementation of tolls as a "victory for the people on the ground".

"Commodities are going to cost more as a direct result of the tolls and effectively, the poor will be worst off," said Ronald.

"If the public rally together and stand firm in the face of tolling by not registering for e-tags and flagrantly disregarding tolling costs and consequent fines, will the authorities have the wherewithal to manage a disgruntled five million motorists?"

Earlier, Cronin told a media briefing that motorcyclists would pay 24 cents a kilometre, light motor vehicles 40 cents, medium vehicles R1, and "longer" vehicles R2.

Qualifying commuter taxis and buses would be exempted entirely.

In addition to the 31 percent e-tag discount, other discounts applicable would be a time of day discount available to all vehicles, and a frequent user discount for motorcycles and light motor vehicles fitted with an e-tag.

Cabinet had agreed that Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele should give effect to the approval in terms of the Sanral and National Roads Act, Cronin said.

In a statement, the Democratic Alliance's Neil Campbell said the toll fees as announced were still too high and would add unacceptably to the costs of doing business in the province.

"While we welcome the exemption for commuter taxis and buses, the private motorist will be hit exceptionally hard.

"We are still in the dark about the real costs of operating the e-tolling system, which is possibly as high as R14 billion over eight years."

This seemed to be excessive and would be difficult to implement in a situation where many people were hard to trace and many licence plates were fraudulent.

The DA was concerned the toll fees would rise further over the years.

"We are paying the price for extremely poor planning by the Gauteng provincial government," Campbell said.

The SA National Taxi Council (Santaco) welcomed the exemption for taxis.

"The exemption relieves the taxi industry from the high operational costs that operators are presently struggling to survive in their day to day business operations," it said in a statement.

Business Unity SA (Busa) said the e-tolling system would still introduce significant administrative and cost complexity for business that would be felt right across the spectrum -- by the tourism industry, manufacturers, and small business.

"The seven-day payment terms requirement still remains a worrying concern, as it will cause cash flow disruptions," it said in a statement.

"While we believe that the reduction in tolls and the exemptions granted to taxis and commuter buses will to some extent soften the pain to commuters, it does undermine the 'user-pay' principle and complicates the criteria applied in deciding which vehicles would be subject to tariffs and which not."

Busa said the cost impact on fast-moving consumer goods, particularly basic foodstuffs, would still be felt most significantly by the working and unemployed poor.
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I haven't toyi-toyi'd since I was at WITS in the early '90s.
I wonder if I can still do it?
I might die of a heart attack after five minutes.
 
Forgive my ignorance here, but why would Cosatu care? Taxis are exempt from this ludicrous double tax anyway, aren't they? Much as they're exempt from the rules of the road...
 
TJ99 said:
Forgive my ignorance here, but why would Cosatu care? Taxis are exempt from this ludicrous double tax anyway, aren't they? Much as they're exempt from the rules of the road...
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Busa said the cost impact on fast-moving consumer goods, particularly basic foodstuffs, would still be felt most significantly by the working and unemployed poor.
 
TelkomUseless said:
Busa said the cost impact on fast-moving consumer goods, particularly basic foodstuffs, would still be felt most significantly by the working and unemployed poor.
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Yeah but I though they were completely separate from Cosatu. Still, now the only thing left on the N1 will ironicaly be the 2 things that cause the most congestion: Taxis crashing into everything/having wheels falling off, and trucks and busses breaking every 200m. While us poor schmucks that use the road properly won't be able to afford it.
 
TJ99 said:
Forgive my ignorance here, but why would Cosatu care? Taxis are exempt from this ludicrous double tax anyway, aren't they? Much as they're exempt from the rules of the road...
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The cost of food and consumer goods for the poor.
 
TJ99 said:
Forgive my ignorance here, but why would Cosatu care? Taxis are exempt from this ludicrous double tax anyway, aren't they? Much as they're exempt from the rules of the road...
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You just made a rather bold and racist assumption there.
 
The taxis are exempt but the people still have to buy the basic stuff which will cost more if these toll fees are levied.
 
TJ99 said:
Forgive my ignorance here, but why would Cosatu care? Taxis are exempt from this ludicrous double tax anyway, aren't they? Much as they're exempt from the rules of the road...
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Um, you need to think it through before you shoot the mouth off! :D

Regardless of the taxis, the costs for delivery of foodstuffs and goods will sky rocket because trucks are being charged R2.00 per kilometer on Gauteng roads. The transport companies and retailers will push this extra cost onto ALL the consumers, white black, orange, pink and blue. So Cosatu has a right to be upset because their members, who are already struggling will face a massive increase in the cost of basic goods and foodstuffs.

This is more than just about Taxis, and the fact that you think it only concerns taxis shows a bit of naievety on your part.
We need all the help that we can get in this fight and it is excellent that Cosatu have taken up the battle cry on this front, because increase in the price of supermarket goods affects all of us.
Now you know. :p
 
TJ99 said:
Forgive my ignorance here, but why would Cosatu care? Taxis are exempt from this ludicrous double tax anyway, aren't they? Much as they're exempt from the rules of the road...
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1 - inflationary pressures are always felt hardest by the poorest of the poor.
2 - taxi operators now have to legally register each and every taxi, which means that the government can force them to pay corporate tax. For the first time ever, taxi bosses might be forced to pay the correct taxes and this is why the taxi associations are still up in arms about the system. They'd prefer to pay a small, flat rate than sacrifice 20% of their profits.
 
Garyvdh said:
Um, you need to think it through before you shoot the mouth off! :D

Regardless of the taxis, the costs for delivery of foodstuffs and goods will sky rocket because trucks are being charged R2.00 per kilometer on Gauteng roads. The transport companies and retailers will push this extra cost onto ALL the consumers, white black, orange, pink and blue. So Cosatu has a right to be upset because their members, who are already struggling will face a massive increase in the cost of basic goods and foodstuffs.

This is more than just about Taxis, and the fact that you think it only concerns taxis shows a bit of naievety on your part.
We need all the help that we can get in this fight and it is excellent that Cosatu have taken up the battle cry on this front, because increase in the price of supermarket goods affects all of us.
Now you know. :p
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Look, it's not that I'm saying we won't appreciate the help, I was just asking why the sudden interest. Everytime the fuel price (and the tax on fuel) goes up it also has an impact on the prices of goods, but Cosatu doesn't give a damn. That surely affects poor people too, and all over the country not just Gauteng. I'm pretty sure trucks can use the alternative routes, in fact I've always wished they would. But yes, most companies will use it as an excuse to bump up the prices again. The reason why I mentioned taxis & busses is that that's what Cosatu was always banging on about iro these toll gates. It doesn't matter what the reason is, as long as they are on the good side for once. I just wanted to know, and (sort of) got an answer.


Edit: There we go, DJ just gave the real answer. It would mean they (taxi drivers) have to start complying with the law. That's the sort of thing that gets Cosatu and Taxi mobsters going.
 
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TJ99 said:
I did not. Taxis are exempt from the tolls, and drive like ****s. Facts, not assumptions. Nothing to do with race either.
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COSATU stands for Confederation Of South African Trade Unions and have fhol to do with taxis, its not SANTACO (South African National Taxi Council).

Anyway, I fully support this strike...
 
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"The exemption relieves the taxi industry from the high operational costs that operators are presently struggling to survive in their day to day business operations," it said in a statement.
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:wtf:

Being the major drive behind a new airline is the sign of a struggling "poor" industry?!
 
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