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Gerald Maguranyanga Traffic Friday
For some time now, any little goodwill kombis may have enjoyed in their love-hate relationship with the public has significantly dwindled as the tide seems to surely have turned against them.
The recent spate of road traffic crashes has fed a growing dislike for kombis as a form of public transport.
The unfortunate kombi-inspired death of a toddler just a few weeks ago galvanised public anger against the poorly regulated kombis.
It did not help matters that the Seke Road kombi accident obliterated 10 souls in yet another case of kombi wildness.
Traffic police also took a dizzying knock in the court of public opinion following the sad events.
The public, with a dim view, seem to define traffic cops and the errant kombis as, in fact, different sides of the same dirty coin. The subsequent public outcry after the killer crashes and the incessant, critical voice of the various media, have helped spur some decisive actions by the seemingly reluctant authorities.
Fast-evolving events of the past few days have seen the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development, Dr Obert Mpofu, crack the whip, officially announcing Government’s intention to phase out kombis (a move described by one faithful reader as retrogressive and akin to throwing the baby out with the bathwater, but such a strong policy measure was surely coming one day!).
What is just missing is the final kill-by-date only!
The minister, in his tough talk, is adamant a reversal of that kombi phase-out policy is never going to happen. Not under his watch!
In fact, the minister, seemingly reinvigorated from his previous tepidness, has gone further to decree that in an impending regulation, the minimum age of a Public Service Vehicle driver shall be 35.
Traffic Friday sees tougher measures coming as the game is surely up for kombis that have over the years played hardball and refused to abide by regulations, murdering hundreds of people in the process.
Additionally, the minister has proposed to increase road toll fees.
But that age review and toll increase are for us to dissect on another day.
Operation Salvage Kombi Reputation
But what if the kombis, in record time, in response to the looming tough operating environment, turned over a new leaf through self-regulation and self-correction and there was an astonishing hitherto unseen compliance with the law?
Traffic Friday would like to encourage the kombi operators to initiate one last throw of the dice to earn public approval as a safe and tolerable means of transport.
Since inception, this column has devotedly slammed the carefree, deadly operations of the kombis, but in light of the doomsday ban and amidst hectic moves behind the scenes by operators to earn a reversal, Traffic Friday emboldens operators to immediately grapple the unruly bull by the horns and tame it.
Such last-minute remedial actions may very well earn some sympathy with the authorities.
If, say, in the next 30-60 days, representative organisations like the Greater Harare Commuter Operators instituted successful, self-regulating measures, then it is may just be possible that Traffic Friday’s hardline and emotional pro-ban position may be softened.
As a quick reminder, the following are just some of many kombi sore points needing an immediate address; reckless speeding, unlicensed drivers, uninsured vehicles, unroadworthy vehicles, overloading, disrespect for fellow road users, foul-mouthed and shabby crews, drug abuse by drivers, the unwritten corruption pact with traffic cops, etc.
Actioning the following may help kombis regain formal acceptance;
Formally registering properly constituted kombi representative bodies with authorities,
Establishing associations representing operators in different regions to push the compliance agenda,
Creating an apex federation representing all kombi bodies,
De-registering non-compliant operators through self-regulation,
Enhancing partnership with the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe to improve safety, etc.
The local kombi operators would do well to study how other huge kombi industries in Africa operate, with a view to gleaning best practices.
The South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) would be a good first stop for a proposed local federation.
SANTACO have grown so influential over the years as a result of good organisation such that no new policies about them are even considered by Government without consulting them as they also enjoy regular official interaction, even at ministerial level.
In a recent interview with The Herald’s Tichaona Zindoga, Mr Ngoni Katsvairo of GHACO was refreshingly candid regarding the traffic police and kombi cat-and-mouse games.
From his frank answers, it is easy to see that his organisation holds some of the answers to the challenges bedevilling the kombis.
It is hugely desirable that his association’s members are instantaneously transformed, even at this eleventh hour, from bad boys to law-abiding compliant operators.
Traffic Friday encourages GHACO to, in record time, set up offices and a full-time secretariat that would en- able self-correction and formal lobbying, to the members’ advantage.
GHACO strongly argues that because kombis employed tens of thousands, a phase-out would jeopardise many families.
Yes, as things stand, kombis are irreversibly on their way out and rightly so. Any softening of that stance by the responsible minister may only be motivated by helpful transformative events on the ground.
The unwise, hotheadedness of the infamous mushika-shika will only hasten the demise of the kombi industry as it stands today. So operators and drivers, the ball is in your court!
In all this traffic chaos, the one critical body that has not said much is the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport.
They wield huge legal influence that can translate into rapid and positive changes especially on issues to do with retaining or annulling spot fines and other exacting measures needed to curtail flourishing traffic police rottenness.
Zimbabwe cannot afford to allow this traffic madness to carry on as usual. We are the most literate nation in Africa, but here we are, incredibly; completely failing to find a workable solution to the kombi menace!
It’s a Friday; let’s keep the driving ‘happy, happy!’
- Gerald Maguranyanga moderates Road Safety Africa, on www.facebook.com/RoadSafetyAfrica, an interactive community page that solicits ideas to curb road traffic accidents in Zimbabwe and Africa. Feedback: WhatsApp… +263 772205300
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