· Residents in Dube, Soweto say taxi drivers in private cars have set up illegal ranks outside the YMCA hall, creating fear in the community.
· The Johannesburg Metro Police Department confirmed illegal ranks are spreading across the city but said operations to shut them down are ongoing.
Residents in Dube, Soweto are raising the alarm over illegal taxi ranks that they say are taking over their neighbourhood.
Community leader Moshe Morolo, 56, told Scrolla.Africa that drivers in private cars and minibus taxis have turned the area outside the YMCA hall into a rank.
He said the drivers claim they are operating legally and tell people their clients have “booked around Soweto”.
“These men park there the whole day,” said Morolo. “When we once confronted them, they intimidated us with a gun.”
Morolo said the situation has worsened as more drivers have joined them, gathering under a tree.
Residents are also concerned about schoolgirls spending time with the drivers during school hours.
Mpho Chabangu, 32, said: “We fear to approach them. These older men hang out with schoolgirls the whole day.”
Dube residents are angry that their neighbourhood has been turned into an illegal taxi rank and want action taken immediately.
Johannesburg Metro Police Department spokesperson Xolani Fihla confirmed the problem of mushrooming illegal ranks.
“We can’t even keep up. The JMPD, together with other departments, conducts ongoing operations to close them down,” said Fihla.
But Morolo said the community has already approached the authorities with no results.
“The rank is still there and schoolgirls continue to hang out with the drivers,” he said.
Pictured above: A taxi
Image source: Sourced
