By Phumlani Saul
Police say taxi protest action is still under way in Central around the Russell Road rank and the situation is tense.
Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said at 3pm on Tuesday most of the roads that had been blocked off were open again but some protesters had not moved on.
“It started early this morning in the Russell Road/ Strand Street/ Govan Mbeki area. Protesters blocked roads with burning tyres and rubble.
“The protest is apparently due to funding that the taxi operators were supposed to get from their organisations.
Some of the debris has been moved and some roads have been reopened but not all.
“Police are trying to resolve the situation and it is volatile and a high police presence is still in place.”
Beetge said a similar situation had erupted in Korsten in the Cottrell Street area.
No arrests had been made, he said.
Songezo Mpanda, chair of the Nelson Mandela Bay branch of the SA National Taxi Council (Santaco), said he would be engaging with the drivers, who were from the Port Elizabeth and Distance Taxi Association (Pedta).
He said he did not believe the protest was in any way related to the incident in KwaDwesi on Monday which saw several vehicles torched in the area including two Algoa buses and a taxi.
We do not know who that was and we condemn that action but it was related to service delivery and was not the same as this today,” he said.
Earlier, Nelson Mandela Bay mayoral committee member for roads and transport Rano Kayser said the protest was not related to any dispute with the municipality.
“Our information is that it involves Covid funding that the taxi drivers say is due to them from national government but which they have not received.
We are still trying to confirm this but it is definitely not related to the IPTS [Integrated Public Transport System] or the municipality.”
Beetge said on Tuesday the KwaDwesi violence that started during the day on Monday had continue well into the night.
“SAPS can confirm that three vehicles were burnt during the morning — a sedan, a light delivery vehicle and a minibus.
“Then shortly before 9pm, an Algoa Bus broke down on the R75 opposite Bayland.
“When an Algoa Bus towing vehicle arrived to assist, both vehicles were attacked and set alight by an unknown group of persons, after which they fled the scene before police arrived.
“When another towing vehicle arrived to tow the Algoa Bus towing vehicle to safety, it was also damaged by persons throwing stones.”
Nobody was injured but SAPS public order police as well as local police station vehicles were on the scene to ensure public safety, he said.
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