Transport Minister Dipuo Peters stated last week Wednesday that processes would be put in place to deal with people who defied the e-tolling system. First off, if you dont have a tag you will pay almost double the tariffs to us our road infrastructure. Secondly, she stated that there would be legal implications. The Justice Project South Africa (JPSA) then sent a letter to SANRAL, requesting details of the exact legal and administrative processes that would be followed for the collection of e-tolls and against those who failed to pay. Their request for clarifying information was met with... hostility. SANRAL threatened legal action against JPSA. SANRAL also acknowledged that the Criminal Procedure Act would be used to prosecute e-toll non-payers instead of using the AARTO act. Untagged motorists would be invoiced for freeway usage and payment of said invoice would be due and payable within seven days. If payment is not made, the account will be handed over to a debt-collection agency. A fine may also be payable. If payment for the outstanding account AND the fine is not received a summons will be issued. Prosecution would mean yet another fine and/or a prison sentence. Heres the fun part: If you get prosecuted for non-payment of e-toll three -or more -times you can apply for the special Habitual Criminal Offender badge, which carries ANOTHER fine and a prison sentence of unspecified duration. Thats A LOT of fines and prison time. And you may also be listed with ITC and other credit reporting agencies. If half of Gautengs motorists dont pay e-toll, approximately one point one million people will start getting annoying calls from people demanding payment of outstanding e-toll accounts. I dont want to pay THAT phone account. The next step is to summons one point one million untagged motorists and make space for them on court rosters. SANRALs answer is to build special courts for the prosecution of non-payers. South Africas current judicial system is over-taxed to a point of failure and new courts get built for prosecuting people who dont pay their e-toll account. Good thing we have our priorities straight isnt it? Finally, unrepentant non-payers could face time in prison. South Africa has a 300% prison population. Shall we just release the schedule 1 offenders to make space for those REAL criminals who don’t pay their e-toll accounts? Other than pissing off almost every road user in this country with their antics, Government and SANRAL have seen fit to alienate every major Union and Political Party in this country. Further, Minister Peters has also decided to make an enemy of the South African Catholic Bishops Conference (SACBC). The SACBC has since issued a “strongly worded” statement, encouraging Roman Catholics “to consider whether it makes sense to participate in a costly and unjust way of extorting money from the people, and to urge them to demand the right to use our roads without having to pay for them in an unreasonable manner”. Bishop Abel Gabuza’s words, not mine. I’m not Catholic, but I still find it offensive that Minister Peters managed to criticize one of the world’s major religions because they don’t have blinkers on their eyes. Minister Peters seems to have been lulled into a zombie-like state of self-deception by the advocates of e-tolling. SANRAL have tried five times in the last three years to successfully launch e-tolling in Gauteng. Due to these failures, their cash reserves are depleted. SANRAL can’t borrow more money as their credit rating has recently been downgraded, and could possibly be downgraded again. SANRAL has no money and R65bn in debt. How long do you honestly think the maximum e-toll rate will be R450.00 a month? On the upside, SANRAL does have a “blank cheque” of sorts, in that the Transport Laws and Related Matters Amendment Bill has been signed into law. SANRAL no longer have to ask permission from anyone, either Government or you and me, to erect gantries wherever they deem fit. In the near future the school run is going to cost parents R1’000.00 a month if SANRAL says it should. This is what most terrifies me about this whole saga. SANRAL is, pretty much, a law unto itself where it pertains to our roads. I say “our” roads because they are OUR roads. The 19’704km national road network does not belong to SANRAL or the South African Government. It belongs to the people of this country. We built these roads. We built these roads with our money, with the sweat from the brows of the men, the women, the children of this land. The Government thinks it can act with impunity, using the past as a riot shield. They have forgotten that we are Lions. We are not Sheep, to be driven off for slaughter. What is unforgivable is that the Government has made us too forget that we are Lions. We have to right - given us by God and the constitution of this country - to challenge practises that we, the people, deem unjust. More so, we have an obligation to our children and our grand-children to oppose those unjust practises. I am a Lion.
Posted on: Tue, 03 Dec 2013 21:19:51 +0000
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