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Commercial bus company, Intercape has announced it will be suing National Police Minister Bheki Cele for failure to act against the reign of terror the company and its employees had been facing.
The bus company said it opened its first case on March 4, 2020, and while three years have passed since and a further 164 more criminal cases were opened, there had not been a suspect arrested or prosecuted.
Intercape said it has experienced a number of attacks in recent weeks, with at least 14 recorded incidents in the Eastern Cape alone.
Buses have been shot at and stoned, and its drivers and passengers have been intimidated by taxi operators in towns across the province.
The long-distance bus company has alleged the attacks amount to a campaign of organised crime and is part of a pattern of racketeering activity.
It said since March, three people have been shot and wounded, while two others seriously assaulted.
The company said parts of South Africa have been turned into a “mafia state” where taxi operators rule with impunity.
This is, according to Intercape, the result of the failed leadership of Cele and President Cyril Ramaphosa who appointed him.
Intercape CEO, Johann Ferreira said police have done nothing.
“The fish rots from the head and we have a police service which has done absolutely nothing to uphold public safety and ensure the arrest of perpetrators.
“Since 2020, Intercape has opened a staggering 167 cases, and rising, with police, predominantly in the Eastern Cape,” Ferreira said.
In a 122-page affidavit issued to the Makhanda High Court on March 31, the bus company also slammed the police and investigative authorities for their continued failure to stop the “calculated campaign of criminality”.
“As matters presently stand, there are no persons under arrest and no pending prosecutions,” Ferreira said.
Intercape has called on the Hawks to investigate the attacks.
It said it has listed Cele as a first respondent, followed by National Police Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola.
It further cited provincial police commissioners of the Eastern Cape, Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the North West, along with the Head of the Hawks, the National Director of Public Prosecutions, and the head of the Investigating Directorate.
Intercape said it has been forced to take this route following the inaction of the National Transport Minister as well as Eastern Cape transport MEC.
It said the attacks, particularly in the Eastern Cape, continue despite several court orders compelling both the transport minister and the provincial counterpart to work with police to ensure the safety of Intercape employees and its passengers.
Part of the affidavit reads:
“For several years, Intercape’s buses, bus drivers and passengers have been subjected to widespread, ongoing and well-documented acts of intimidation and violence at the hands of the taxi industry.
“The violence and intimidation have not occurred in isolation but have been coupled with express demands from representatives of the taxi industry to operate on their terms. Taxi associations have convened multiple meetings with long-distance bus operators at which they have demanded that the bus operators:
- increase their prices to an agreed minimum price for specified routes;
- limit the number of buses operating each route; and
- alter the departure times of buses to appease minibus taxi operators.“
Intercape states that resistance to the demands “has been punished through acts of violence against Intercape’s buses, drivers and passengers, as well as the creation of so-called ”no-go zones“ in which taxi industry representatives – through the threat and infliction of violence – have made it exceedingly difficult and dangerous for long-distance bus operators to load and offload passengers”.
It said the “no-go zones” in the Eastern Cape have been reported to be: Butterworth, Ngcobo, Tsomo, Dutywa, and Cofimvaba.
It said the ongoing violence and the taxi associations’ demands were no coincidence.
“In combination, they amount to a campaign of organised crime, the fundamental aim of which is to drive Intercape (and other long-distance bus operators) out of certain parts of the country so that taxi operators may monopolise and take over the long-distance transport industry, and, consequently, increase their profits.
“The company charges that the attacks form part of a “pattern of racketeering activity” as defined in the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 121 of 1998 (the POCA),” another part of the affidavit reads.
The bus company says opening criminal cases with police has been “in vain” as nothing has come from it.
It further argued its cases be investigated and prosecuted at two levels namely: cases should be investigated individually, as independent acts of criminality, and secondly, the acts of criminality should be investigated collectively as forming part of an overarching scheme of organised crime.
“Of the 165 cases opened by Intercape as of March 31, there had been one arrest, linked to the April 2022 murder of intercape driver Bangikhaya Machana, but that charges have since been withdrawn against the suspect,” the company said.
It said it has gone as far as providing police and the Hawks with evidence, schedules of reported cases and extensive evidence.
“But the SAPS and the DPCI have done nothing meaningful with this evidence.
“And their conduct suggests that they have little if any intention of doing so,” Intercape said.
The company has further asked the court to order a report be submitted to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), within 60 days, detailing all steps taken and progress made in investigating each of the cases opened, as well as the status of each investigation to enable the NPA to coordinate the investigation and prosecution of crimes.
The affidavit further states: “The risk of injury or death to Intercape’s drivers and passengers is as great as it has ever been. Intercape itself has no means to prevent it.
“While it has previously approached this court to require the transport authorities to devise an action plan to ensure that Intercape can safely transport passengers to and from the Eastern Cape, the drafting and implementation of that action plan have been woefully inadequate.
“Unless and until those responsible for orchestrating these acts of violence are placed behind bars, and a clear message is sent that this type of organised crime will not be tolerated, the risk of injury and death will persist,” it said.
The company said the brazen attacks continue to place its staff and passengers at risk and in the 11 days of issuing its application to sue, it has been victim of 14 further attacks or incidents of intimidation.
“In these attacks, some of its passengers sustained injuries. Still, there has been no effective police action to investigate and arrest those involved,” Intercape added.
Source IOL