Tension is building at the Beit Bridge border post on the South African border where scores of frustrated truckdrivers have been waiting since the weekend to cross into Zimbabwe. By Tuesday, the queue of trucks stretched almost all the way from the border post back to Musina some 15 kilometres away.
In response to an enquiry, the provincial spokesperson for the Department of Transport and Community Safety, Mr Matome Taueatsoala, said that the problem was being caused on the Zimbabwean side of the border post. "The challenge is in Zimbabwe. They work a little bit and stop. Our officers are trying to manage traffic on the road. We are facing an increasing number of heavy motor vehicles along the N1 road from Musina to Beitbridge town, due to the closing of the transit shed on the Zimbabwean side," said Taueatsoala. He added that he had received this update from the Zimbabwean Revenue Authority (Zimra).
Truckdrivers and truck-stop owners on the South African side, however, disagree with Taueatsoala. "This is not true. Traffic officers are allowing very few trucks to park at truck stops around Beit Bridge. Most trucks waiting for their clearance forms should be parking their vehicles in truck stops, but we wonder why they are not allowing this," said one driver, who wanted to remain anonymous. The driver joined the queue just outside Musina on Sunday, 26 July, but had not even moved a kilometre closer to Beit Bridge by Tuesday morning.
Mr Louis Muchemwa joined the queue on Monday evening. "Traffic officers should not allow other vehicles to jump the queue as it causes confusion. I understand that some trucks transport perishables and are allowed through quicker, but at times they allow some without perishables to pass in front of others," he said on Tuesday.
Limpopo Mirror/Zoutpansberger visited two truck stops around the border on Tuesday. According to security staff manning these truck stops, the number of trucks coming into the truck stop has drastically reduced. "We are not sure what is going on. Some of these truck drivers should already be in the truck stop, waiting for clearance, but they are all still in the queue," said a man who works at one of the truck stops, but was not allowed to officially speak to the media. This contradicted Taueatsoala's earlier statement that when he had visited the truck stops in the area, they had been fully packed with trucks ready to proceed into Zimbabwe.
At the time of our going to press on Wednesday, frustrated truck drivers were still stuck in the queue. The exact cause of the delay remains unclear.