Cape Town – Taxi operators affiliated with the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association (CATA) staged a protest in Nyanga on Monday, calling on police to take stronger action against ongoing violence affecting members of the taxi industry.
Hundreds of taxi operators took part in the demonstration, where they handed over a memorandum calling on police to prioritise investigations into several killings linked to the taxi industry.
The protest also resulted in a temporary halt of taxi services at the Nyanga taxi rank earlier in the day, leaving many commuters stranded before operations later resumed.
CATA leaders say at least 16 of their members, including women, have been killed since the COVID-19 pandemic, with some of the incidents occurring at the Nyanga taxi rank.
CATA secretary Nkululeko Sityebo said the association believes investigations into these cases have been moving too slowly, prompting operators to demand accountability from law enforcement.
“There must be arrests for all those people, and there must be reports that we are receiving from the police that this case is at this stage as we speak,” said Sityebo.
He added that operators want regular updates from police instead of simply being told that cases have been opened. “Not just that the case has been opened, but there’s no progress,” he said.
The march follows a series of violent incidents within the taxi industry, including a recent suspected arson attack at the Nyanga taxi rank in which several vehicles were destroyed.
The memorandum submitted to police also calls for stronger security measures to protect taxi operators and commuters, including improved policing and the installation of surveillance cameras at the taxi rank.
CATA leaders have warned that the ongoing violence is creating fear among drivers and operators, while also threatening the stability of public transport services relied on by thousands of commuters across Cape Town.
