Several driving school owners closed the gates to the Mbombela Drivers and Learners Testing Centre (DLTC) on Tuesday, accusing some officials of increasing alleged bribe money from R1 500 to R2 000.

Lowvelder approached the Department of Community Safety, Security and Liaison (DCSSL). In response to these allegations, the department called on community members with proof of such corruption to get in touch with them, while they also condemned the protest and the alleged corruption.

Mbombela’s Driving School Owners (MDSO), an association of several driving schools in the area, barricaded the DLTC as they refuse to pay the alleged R500 increase in so-called bribes reportedly charged to allow its applicants to pass their tests.

According to the MDSO chairperson Stanzo Chikobela, they had been paying the officials at the centre R1 500 per applicant for codes 8 and 10, and R2 500 for code 14. He said some examiners had informed them that they were going to increase both prices by R500 as from November 1.

Lowvelder specifically mentioned to Chikobela that participating in bribery is a crime, to which he responded that driving school owners found that clients who refused to pay bribes, would not pass their tests.

“We explained to them that the money was too much for our customers and that the increases would collapse our businesses that are currently struggling. They promised to come back to us with feedback. Nothing happened until today [November 1] when we realised that our customers who did not pay the increased prices, failed their tests,” he alleged.

Chikobela said they engaged the officials on this and were told that those who had paid the R2 000 would pass their tests. They would not allow those without the required money to pass, allegedly claiming that they were wasting their time.

More than 17 driving school owners who were part of the protest seconded Chikobela’s claim that if they did not pay bribes, their clients failed. They embarked on the strike because none of their clients who tested on Tuesday passed, reportedly because they refused to pay the additional R500.

“We then decided to close all the gates so that no one will do their testing until the responsible department intervenes. We are also calling on the Hawks to investigate the DLTC, because corruption is getting out of hand. If they can increase bribe money as if they are allowed to, that is wrong. They are killing our businesses and robbing innocent people,” they said.

The owners added that the department had sent one of its officials to address the situation and the school owners agreed to open the gates. There will be another meeting on November 15 to discuss the matter further.

The individual employees implicated at the test centre indicated that they were not allowed to respond to the allegations, and that the DCSSL would do so on their behalf.

The spokesperson for the DCSSL, Moeti Mmusi, said it has taken note of the closure of the centre and that if true, these incidents are ‘unacceptable and illegal’.

“If driving school owners had issues with the centre, there are amicable ways in which they can deal with these. We were not aware of the allegations, however, we view this matter of corruption in a licensing environment in a very serious light. We are appealing to anyone with information to put it in writing so that it can be investigated. We have a unit that deals with corruption in our DLTCs, and if we find any wrongdoing from our officials, we will not hesitate to take action against them,” he said.

Mmusi added that people may contact Corruption Watch on the toll-free number on 0800 204 098, or they can report irregularities to their nearest police station.