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The brutal assassination of Babita Deokaran was not an isolated crime. It was a symptom. A loud alarm in a system where corruption is not criminal aberration but an ecosystem
BABITA DEOKARAN ANNUAL LECTURE

Ordinary courage propels us from silence to justice

The brutal assassination of Babita Deokaran was not an isolated crime. It was a symptom. A loud alarm in a system where corruption is not criminal aberration but an ecosystem

  • Armand Bam
8 min read
Decorating Baker Group taxis with messages in support of Palestine. Photos: Knut Otto, Reza Khota
ART

Driven to protest for Palestine

‘I don’t know how to keep quiet,’ says Cape Town artist Thania Petersen of the Israel-Gaza war

  • Sean O Toole
8 min read
A recent study commissioned by the global financial services company, Visa, highlighted that although 93% of minibus taxi passengers still use cash, 56% of them would prefer to use a prepaid card if one was available.
CAPE AMALGAMATED TAXI ASSOCIATION

Brave new minibus taxi world: Cashless and taxed

Brave new minibus taxi world: Cashless and taxed

  • Eunice Masson
8 min read
ELECTRIC TAXIS

Quantum leap for new green taxis

The fuel-powered taxi has been given a second life by retrofitting it with electric propulsion

  • Sheree Bega
7 min read
More belt-tightening at VW to fund electric new start
AARTO

Bad data: No, VW Polo drivers aren’t the worst in South Africa

The headlines vilifying one group of drivers miss the point about an important road safety report.

  • Adam Oxford
5 min read
Hundreds of people queue to enter a supermarket stoking a fear of food and fuel shortages in Durban on July 14, 2021 as several shops, businesses and infrastructure are damaged in the city, following five nights of continued violence and looting sparked by the jailing of ex-president Jacob Zuma. – So far, 72 people have died and more than 1,200 people arrested, since former president Jacob Zuma began a 15-month jail term for contempt, sparking protests that swiftly turned violent. The violence, targeting malls and other economic hotspots has seen shops and infrastructure destroyed. (Photo by RAJESH JANTILAL / AFP)
ARMS DEAL TRIAL

KwaZulu-Natal gets back to work as fears of second shutdown fail to materialise

Taxi boss Mandla Gcaba went on radio at the weekend to deny his taxis would be used to shuttle protesters to support his cousin, Jacob Zuma

  • Paddy Harper
2 min read
Public transport in Cape Town and its surrounds has stabilised somewhat following two weeks of disruption due to ongoing conflict over routes between two rival taxi associations.
AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS

Fikile has a daring plan for taxis

The transport minister presented to the ANC’s top body a proposal to establish a bank for taxi operators and to subsidise the industry

  • Thanduxolo Jika
  • Mail Guardian Correspondent
6 min read
Commuters using minibus taxis will not see tariff increases just yet as taxi associations refrain from fare increases despite rising fuel costs.
BONGINKOSI MADIKIZELA

Scores die in Western Cape’s deadly taxi tit-for-tat

Forty-three people were shot dead in the first six months of this year in the Western Cape’s intractable taxi violence, while close to 100 have been arrested and 40 are on court…

  • Lester Kiewit
3 min read
Off to work: Healthcare workers at Mediclinic Kloof. Staff who’ve tested Covid-19 positive say the hospital management has accused them of not taking precautions when outside the hospital; the staff claim they are not provided with adequate PPE at work. (Photos: Paul Botes)
CORONAVIRUS

Covid-19 positive health workers accused of ‘carelessness’

Mediclinic workers say the company is not taking responsibility for a Covid-19 outbreak at a Pretoria hospital

  • Sarah Smit
5 min read
The gold standard is complete suppression of the virus, which can be done without massive economic disruption by using rapid testing, effective contact tracing and complete isolation of infected cases. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
COMMUNICATION

Covid logic beats ‘irrational’ human logic

The virus will lose if the government and high-profile people communicate effectively the reasons for restrictions and the compromises that have been made

  • Philip Machanick
5 min read
A thing of the past? The first vehicle of its kind in the country will arrive by the end of this year and it will be rigorously tested under local conditions.
CORONAVIRUS

Taxis: The illegitimate children of Mzansi’s transport industry

It is clear that the democratic government has failed the taxi industry, not only now during the Covid-19 pandemic, but for decades.

  • Themba Dlamini
5 min read
The Covid-19 pandemic has caused pain for minibus taxi passengers and drivers. (Paul Botes/M&G)
CORONAVIRUS

The taxi industry deserves a full load of respect

If the government has money to bail out the aviation, energy and broadcasting industries, why can it not help this anchor of our economy?

  • Mcebo Dlamini
3 min read
The Covid-19 pandemic has caused pain for minibus taxi passengers and drivers. (Paul Botes/M&G)
CORONA LEAD

Virus shakes up taxi sector

Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdown have continued to tear through profits in the taxi industry, requiring the sector to formulate a new approach for how it operates, even…

  • Thando Maeko
5 min read
Public transport in Cape Town and its surrounds has stabilised somewhat following two weeks of disruption due to ongoing conflict over routes between two rival taxi associations.
COUNTRY

How South Africa’s minibus taxi industry exploits its drivers 

The drivers who are the bedrock of the public transport system are often paid less than the sectoral determination stipulates

  • Magnificent Mndebele
  • Musawenkosi Cabe
18 min read
(Graphic: John McCann/M&G)
MICROPLASTICS

Death or taxes for polluting plastic

South Africa’s apathetic attitude to plastic use requires an intervention — but what would work here?

  • Lynley Donnelly
8 min read