The Democratic Alliance (DA) will be submitting a complaint with the ethics committee against the National Minister of Transport, Sindisiwe Chikunga after the taxi strike that resulted in arson, murder, and damage to infrastructure in Cape Town last week.
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This comes after the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) in the Western Cape called for a stay away on August 3 with immediate effect.
The minister accused the City of Cape Town of using the wrong by-laws to impound 6,000 taxis and called for their immediate release.
According to the DA’s Shadow Minister of Transport, Dr Chris Hunsinger, Chikunga openly sided with Santaco and the taxi operators.
‘Her call for the immediate release of impounded taxis was framed under the false pretext of the City of Cape Town’s amended traffic by-laws, an incorrect and misleading assertion,’ he said. ‘In fact, the impounding was executed in strict accordance with the National Land Transport Act (NLTA) and was entirely consistent with national legislation governing the industry.’
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‘During the past week, the City demonstrated an unwavering commitment to commuter and citizen safety.’
‘It resisted the use of violence as a negotiating tactic, acted in the long-term interest of all involved, and refused to bow to pressure from Santaco or the Minister.’
Hunsinger said that Chikunga’s remarks reflected more than misjudgement, calling it a calculated political move and a deliberate manipulation of the sensitive issue to benefit the African National Congress (ANC) in the upcoming elections.
‘Such opportunistic behaviour was not just irresponsible and unethical; it constituted a clear violation of the Code of Ethical Conduct and Disclosure of Members’ Interests of Parliament.
‘Given this grievous misconduct, the DA will submit an ethics complaint to the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests.’
‘Our submission will argue that Minister Chikunga’s intentional dissemination of falsehoods not only violated the principles of the Code but also failed to uphold the law and undermined the very integrity of Parliament. This matter transcends mere politics; it touches on the core values of our democracy.’
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Also read:
Hill-Lewis welcomes end to ‘entirely unnecessary’ taxi strike
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