A feud between rival taxi associations, the Makhado Long Distance Taxi Association (Malta), the Beit Bridge Taxi Association and the Musina-Sibasa Polokwane Taxi Association (BTA) is seemingly spiralling out of control.
On Tuesday, three drivers were injured and rushed to the hospital when taxi violence broke out at a taxi rank in Polokwane. Vehicles were burnt and shots were fired at random at passengers. Commuters who are travelling over long distances complained that they have become collateral damage in this dispute.
The taxi associations are apparently fighting over lucrative routes. So far this year, two taxi bosses belonging to two different organisations, have been killed in the taxi war. Mr Wilson Musandiwa, who formed part of the BTA, was shot in June, while Solomon Makananisa from Malta was killed in September.
A member of one of the associations, who did not want his identity to be revealed, said on Wednesday that the taxi that was burnt in Polokwane belonged to a rival group.
The feud has already ended up in court and in December last year Malta approached the Thohoyandou High Court, complaining that BTA and the Musina Sibasa-Polokwane Taxi Association and its affiliates were operating on the route from Louis Trichardt to Polokwane. The Malta operators accused the others of invading their territory and poaching customers. The rival organisations maintained that Malta was the cause of the trouble. "These Malta drivers are actually making business difficult for us by snatching away our customers and, at the end of the day, we gain nothing."
Malta members this week said they were "sick and tired" of the intimidation tactics. They said that they were not illegally operating on anyone else's routes. "We operate to Polokwane from Louis Trichardt, not from Musina". Malta called on the authorities to resolve the conflict before innocent people die.
One commuter, Mr Judas Matlase, said that he was worried about the situation. He described what had happened during the latest incident in Polokwane, saying that a taxi and Toyota Avanza had arrived at the rank. The occupants then started to shoot and pour petrol on another taxi before setting it alight. According to him, commuters are worried about their own safety. "What the industry doesn't understand is that these fights affect us more than taxi operators. We are caught in the middle of a conflict that has nothing to do with us," he said.
The police spokesperson, Lt Ngoatshe Ngoepe, confirmed that the police had opened a case of malicious damage to property.