MEC to be held accountable for road deaths

This came to light while the entire local community, stunned by the tragic death of two small children, closed ranks in an emotional show of solidarity with the bereaved family and a firm demand for an immediate end to the threat of heavy vehicles coming from the mountain.

The scene of the latest tragic accident at a four-way stop on the N1 was this week transformed into a solemn sanctuary, covered with wreaths, flowers and decorated crosses. More flowers are added on a daily basis by residents of all ages.

At an urgent mass meeting on Monday, it was decided that the authorities should be forced to rectify the unacceptable, fatal bungling of the whole crisis of heavy traffic across the mountain immediately, triggered by the highly controversial erection of the Baobab Toll Plaza. The meeting supported the staging of a demonstration at the scene of the accident, to draw attention to the serious plight of a community whose wishes and interests are being deliberately ignored by the responsible authorities.

The local Chamber of Commerce issued a stern warning to the MEC, as early as January last year, that he has created an extremely dangerous situation by ordering that all trucks should travel over the Soutpansberg Mountain along the N1 route. The warning followed after signboards were hastily erected threatening a fine of R10 000 for trucks that do not travel over the mountain. The signs mysteriously appeared during the run-up to the solar eclipse celebrations in Musina. It was widely speculated at the time that this arrangement was to ensure additional revenue for the toll gates. One official admitted that, without the heavy trucks, the Baobab Toll Plaza would not be economically viable. The heavy trucks have to fork out R90 toll fees at Baobab.

The Chamber of Commerce at the time told the MEC: "You do understand that this foolish arrangement is making a mockery of the Arrive Alive campaign. The raising of tollgate fees can never be more important than the lives of the motorists."

A copy of the letter was also sent for the personal attention of the then Minister of Transport, Mr A M Omar.

Although the signboards were twice modified to remove obvious clumsy irregularities, the request to remove these boards was never acceded to.

In an attorney's letter, on behalf of the Chamber, the MEC was warned that he himself, individuals in the provincial government, as well as the national government, will be jointly and severally held responsible for payment of all damages which may result from their irresponsible actions. The letter, dated January 27, 2003, states: "In the event of any collision occurring due to your ruling and in the event of any death or injuries occurring due to this ruling while you are well aware of this extremely dangerous situation that you are creating, then you will be held responsible for all such damages caused to such a person or group of persons."

It further continues: "The people will also consider to lay charges of murder, alternatively culpable homicide, against yourselves, as it is clearly foreseeable that people are going to be killed due to this ruling made by yourselves, notwithstanding this fact you are ignoring the foreseeability of such deaths that may occur and therefore it will be regarded that you are acting on purpose herein."

In the particular letter it was demanded that the MEC should immediately, within three days, rectify the position. He never did.

During the mass meeting held in town at the beginning of this week, a cross section of the population and official representatives of the Chairman's Association, the Chamber of Commerce and two Taxi Associations supported a demand for an urgent meeting with the acting National Minister of Transport to discuss the whole issue. They also supported protest action to highlight the plight of residents who are being arrogantly ignored by the provincial MEC.

In a final letter to MEC Farisani, the Chamber of Commerce this week informed him of the latest developments and the fact that the matter is now being moved to a higher level.

"Whereas we have requested your assistance on several occasions in the past, to no avail, we now refer the matter to higher authorities in the hope that they regard human lives more precious," the letter states.

During the mass meeting this week, several alternative proposals were put forward to solve the crisis, apparently caused by conflicting financial interests, precipitated by the transformation of the natio-nal road into a toll road without alternative routes and the erection of yet another toll plaza in the already overloaded poorest province of South Africa.

The upgrading of the Waterpoort/Vivo/Dendron road as the recommended alternative route for heavy vehicle transport should be considered urgently.

The possibility of introducing a road tax on all large trucks at the Beitbridge Border Post was put forward. The road tax must be equal to the toll fees that they would have to pay at both the Baobab and Capricorn Toll Plazas. This would encourage trucks to revert to the use of the road via Dendron and create the relief which the local community requires and yet enable the roads authorities to collect payment to maintain the road system.

At the meeting, the entire principle of toll roads as a means of generating the money necessary for road construction and maintenance was seriously questioned. It was pointed out that sufficient funds are already being collected by petrol levies and other measures. These funds are, however, not utilized for the purpose for which they were collected. It was pointed out that the government and its National Roads Agency are acting in bad faith because they do not honour the original undertakings and principles under which the idea of toll roads was accepted by the people.

News - Date: 02 April 2004

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