The heart of an elderly taxi owner, Mrs Mushathama Sarah Makaukau (90), is bubbling over with triumph, joy and happiness after the Department of Transport finally resolved her problem. Her operating licence or permit was converted from one taxi association to another without her permission.
It appeared that Makaukau's permit was converted from the Hlanganani Taxi Association to Zoutpansberg Taxi Association (ZTA) without her consent. She had to wait for seven years before the department could successfully resolve the matter.
"I was contacted last year and informed that the matter had been resolved and that I would get my permit reversal confirmation in January," she said. "My smile has been restored. Like I had always maintained, my permit was under and within the Hlanganani Taxi Association, but was changed by people who took advantage of my old age."
Makaukau had inherited her permit from her late husband, Mr ME Makaukau, who was a legitimate member of the Hlanganani Taxi Association. She said that all her troubles started when her taxi was scrapped in 2010. She stated that the Zoutpansberg Taxi Association knew that she had an old, beaten-up taxi at her home and offered to help her scrap it. "I agreed, but in the process of helping me, they also converted my permit without clearly explaining all the implications to me," she said.
She stated the ZTA still owed her around R17 000 and that she would not rest until she was reimbursed. "They said that these were affiliation fees, but they were just robbing me," she said. "I am now seeking a way to reclaim all my monies."
Makaukau's son, Mr Sydney Makaukau (66), had tried to intervene, explaining that his mother was too old to understand their intentions. He indicated that the association wanted to buy their permit from them, but they had refused. "I was labelled a third party but today I am glad that we eventually won the war," he said. "We are also happy that we can now work along the routes of Hlanganani Taxi Association, fully knowing that we are not being abused or intimidated."
The Zoutpansberg Taxi Association's representative, Mr Thiathu Maimela, said he was not keen to comment because journalists were known for always twisting the comments people gave, just to feed their readers' thirst to read.