Police vehicles damaged in KZN taxi protest

Provincial police spokesperson Major Thulani Zwane said about 100 taxi owners and drivers blocked the road and damaged two police vehicles.

“No arrests have been made. No injuries have been reported and the situation is peaceful at the moment. POP and Newcastle members are monitoring the situation,” added Zwane.

Early this month, police in Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal opened a case of attempted murder against their own after a 4-year-old boy was struck in the head by a rubber bullet during a taxi fare protest.

All roads into the town of Ladysmith in KwaZulu-Natal were closed off by commuters apparently angry at a R1 increase in fares.

Provincial spokesperson Colonel Jay Naicker said the boy was outside his house watching a grader clear rocks from a street where ongoing protests had been happening in the St Chads area.

“A group of community members then became violent and attempted to stop the grader. Public Order Police members were on scene and had to use rubber bullets to disperse the crowd,” Naicker said.

It is believed one of the rounds then struck the child on the head. He was then rushed to a nearby clinic for treatment.

Last month, taxi drivers owners from Bambanani Margate took to the streets to express their concerns in Margate, KwaZulu-Natal and gave the municipality and police a seven-day ultimatum to respond to their grievances.

The association accused police and Hibiscus Coast Municipality (HCM) of favouring other taxi associations such as Gamalakhe over them.

Commuters were reportedly left stranded during the march.

The protesters marched to the Port Shepstone Civic Centre, where they handed over a memorandum to the Hibiscus Coast Municipality mayor Cynthia Mqwebu and Brigadier Agnes Nxamangele. 

– Caxton News Service