Johannesburg, South Africa
NO BUSES UNTIL SAFETY RESTORED
No buses will be operating in Johannesburg until Metrobus is satisfied with the safety of its employees and commuters, the company said on Tuesday.
”The situation has not changed. We don’t want to risk the lives of our staff as well as commuters, so there are no buses that are running today [Tuesday],” said Metrobus spokesperson Charles Hlebele.
The strike took an ugly turn last month when a Metrobus driver was shot and wounded and another shot and killed. Two more drivers were killed last week.
The possibility of the incidents being linked to an ongoing labour dispute has not been ruled out.
Metrobus has been locked in a dispute with the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) for more than a month over the payment of unused sick leave and the reinstatement of dismissed staffers.
”This morning we sent a letter to Samwu asking them for an emergency meeting. We have not received a response from them,” said Hlebele.
Hlebele said Metrobus had been trying to get hold of the union since Saturday.
Samwu secretary Dumisani Langa, however, said the union had been trying to establish contact with the bus company since last Monday.
”We only got a reply from them over the weekend. Our negotiation team will meet with Metrobus on Friday,” he said.
Langa confirmed that the union had received the letter from Metrobus.
”When we finally meet with Samwu, the issue of the dispute regarding sick-leave payment as well as the issue of staffers that were fired due to the misappropriation of company assets will be discussed. We want to come to a resolution,” said Hlebele.
On Friday, Metrobus temporarily suspended operations after one of its buses was found burnt out in Kagiso near Krugersdorp. The charred bodies of two Metrobus employees were found inside the bus. It is believed that the bus was hijacked while taking Metrobus employees to work.
Hlebele said the company will continue to monitor the situation.
On Sunday, the bus company offered a R50 000 reward for information that would help track down those responsible for the attacks on its bus drivers.
The Democratic Alliance has condemned the murder of the bus drivers, adding that the strike is crippling the bus service.
”The official response to the killing of the bus drivers and the crippling of the Johannesburg bus service has been pathetic. When is the mayor or the provincial transport MEC [minister] or safety MEC going to tell us that they will move heaven and earth to find the killers?” asked provincial transport spokesperson James Swart.
Swart said that if Samwu wants to prove it was not involved in the killings of the bus drivers, it should pledge to put all the resources of the union at the disposal of the police investigation in order to bring the killers to justice. — Sapa