Source: Unregistered kombis flood Zim routes | The Herald
Zvamaida Murwira Senior Reporter
OVER 60 percent of commuter omnibuses plying major routes are not registered, putting the lives of passengers at risk as they are devoid of passenger insurance.
This emerged as commuter omnibus operators on Monday defended their decision to set daily targets for drivers saying the arrangement was justified given that operators were duty-bound to pay presumptive tax to Treasury.
The threshold, they said, was within reasonable limits. Giving oral evidence before a Parliamentary portfolio committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development chaired by Chegutu West MP Cde Dexter Nduna (Zanu-PF), Zimbabwe National Commuter Omnibus Operators Organisation chairman Mr Aaron Tapfuma said there was no way they could avoid setting targets for their drivers if they were to operate viably.
“If I say we are not giving them targets, I would be lying. I do not want to lie. But let me say, when the driver is off duty, we also go behind the wheel and drive the kombi on the roads or employ relief drivers who bring much more than what the regular driver brings. The relief driver can bring $95 per day while the regular driver sticks to the $60 that I would have given him,” said Mr Tapfuma.
“We are aware that our drivers easily meet the target, say in the afternoon and the rest of the day, they would be raising their loot. Another reason for targets is that we pay presumptive tax to the Government.”
Earlier on, the association had accused the police of not being keen to remove pirate taxis commonly known as ‘mushikashika’ saying the law enforcement agencies were reluctant to do so for fear of impeding their daily target to raise a certain threshold in spot fines.
Glen Norah MP Mr Webster Maondera (MDC-T) had asked the association their moral ground to blame police details for working with daily targets when they were equally imposing targets on their drivers. Setting of targets by transport operators on their drivers have been cited as one of the contributing factors on road carnages.
Mr Tapfuma implored Government to protect registered transport operators arguing that they were law abiding citizens who paid insurance and were licensed to do business within the confines of the law. “Commercial vehicles must be registered, licensed and they need protection because they bring revenue to the Government.
“If we do not protect these registered vehicles, we are creating chaos. Registered operators are saying if we are not protected by the law, what is the purpose of registering, getting insurance and all that? Most vehicles are not registered about 60 percent of the kombis are not registered,” said Mr Tapfuma.
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