‘‘The office of Transport Minister Dipuo Peters undertook to get answers form the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) as to what has been done so far to combat the disturbing raise in violent crimes on railway line in especially the Western Cape over the last few months.
A delegation of the United National Transport Union (UNTU) today met with Joe Mojapelo, special advisor to the Minister, and Mkhacani Godfrey Maluleke, Chief Director: Rail operations & Oversight, to discuss the Unions grave concerns about the deteriorating security on railway lines costing the lives of innocent law abiding commuters, PRASA staff and train crew.
Just last night a PRASA employee was robbed and stabbed to death at the Nyanda Station on the Central Line in the Western Cape. It was also on this route that Joepie Joubert (59) shot and killed one of his four attackers at the Kraaifontein Station last week. Two months ago, another UNTU member, Pieter Barend (Piet) Botha, was shot twice in the head while waiting for a train at the Netreg Station on this line.
The meeting today was the ministries response to the open letter Steve Harris, General Secretary of UNTU, wrote to the Minister last month in which he pointed out to her that she has a Constitutional obligation to ensure that PRASA, a parastatal under her control, stop simply pulling up its shoulders and starts taking drastic steps to ensure the safety of our members, their staff and the commuters.
Mojapelo assured Harris that the Minister, who is currently on sick leave, is extremely concerned about the deteriorating security and the high rise in incidents of violent crimes. Earlier the Minister wrote to PRASA, the Minister of Police and the acting commission of the SAPS asking for them to take hands and come up with a dedicated intervention plan where police reserves are used to enhance safety. There are already 3 500 police officials deployed at railway stations across the country.
According to Maluleke and Mojapelo there is a long term plan in place to secure all railway lines in South Africa similar as to how the Gautrain is secured. Currently there are no incedents at the Gautrain because the railway stations and the railway line are closed off for the public and can be secured. The idea is to do this with each and every railway line in South Africa.
Harris says unfortunately the crime on railway line in South Africa has gotten so out of hand that we no longer can wait for a long term solution with a 20-year deadline. Just last year R20 million ton of goods could not be transported by trains, the cheapest form of transport, because there are no guarantees how long it will take due to cable theft and the theft of signals.
Malulekeke says however it will not help to bring back the Railway Police Service as it existed prior to 1989 when it was merged with the SAPS. Currently there are a dedicated railway policing unit which is not effective according to Harris. Maluleke says in this situation various stakeholders like the SAPS, PRASA, the Ministry and Organised Labour should take hand to find solutions.
The meeting was concluded with an undertaking form the Ministry to inform UNTU by Friday what has been done by PRASA after the Minister requested the parastatal earlier to act.
For more information, phone Harris at 082 566 5516.
Issued on behalf of UNTU by Sonja Carstens, Media and Liaison Officer. For UNTU Press Releases e-mail sonja@untu.co.za or phone 082 463 6806.
