The meeting scheduled for Friday evening to ease tensions between two rival taxi associations never took place.
The gathering was called after the two taxi associations – Mdantsane East London Taxi Association (Meta) and East London and District Taxi Association (Melta) – clashed on Thursday and Friday at Mdantsane Highway’s taxi rank as ongoing taxi violence gripped parts of the province.
Melta spokesman Welile Blayi said the meeting was meant to take place between Meta chairman Michael Mphunga and the leadership of Melta.
“Mr Mphunga confirmed his intentions to attend the meeting but failed to pitch. We waited for hours for him to arrive.”
On Thursday afternoon, Meta taxi members arrived at the Mdantsane Highway taxi rank at 3pm in huge numbers and forced all Melta taxis from the rank. When Melta members went back to work the following morning at 4.30am, Meta members were already at the rank blocking the entrance for any car with a Melta sticker. The standoff resulted in NU1 police having to be called in.
Following intervention from the police, all the taxi associations were allowed to operate. Three taxi associations operate from the Mdantsane Highway taxi rank.
The police had no report of any injuries or fatalities following the confrontation.
The Daily Dispatch understands that a group of 200 disgruntled Meta members, who broke away from Melta, were behind the clashes.
In an interview with the Dispatch yesterday Meta spokesman Zukile Mrhubatha said the standoff was to attract the attention of Melta so a meeting would be called. However they could not attend Friday’s meeting because their chairman “Mr Mphunga had another commitment in court”.
He said a new date for the meeting had been set for today at 10am at NU1 police station.
“The concerned members of Meta operating on the Phumlani route have been out of business for the past three weeks as Melta is punishing them for leaving the organisation. They are making sure they don’t get passengers for that route.”
Mrhubatha claimed Phumlani taxi operators were struggling to pay their taxi instalments because of the alleged sanctions imposed by Melta.
Melta’s Blayi accused the disgruntled Meta group of using violence to intimidate Melta members into joining Meta. — malibongwed@dispatch.co.za
Rival taxi associations fail to meet amid ongoing violence
The gathering was called after the two taxi associations – Mdantsane East London Taxi Association (Meta) and East London and District Taxi Association (Melta) – clashed on Thursday and Friday at Mdantsane Highway’s taxi rank as ongoing taxi violence gripped parts of the province.
Melta spokesman Welile Blayi said the meeting was meant to take place between Meta chairman Michael Mphunga and the leadership of Melta.
“Mr Mphunga confirmed his intentions to attend the meeting but failed to pitch. We waited for hours for him to arrive.”
On Thursday afternoon, Meta taxi members arrived at the Mdantsane Highway taxi rank at 3pm in huge numbers and forced all Melta taxis from the rank. When Melta members went back to work the following morning at 4.30am, Meta members were already at the rank blocking the entrance for any car with a Melta sticker. The standoff resulted in NU1 police having to be called in.
Following intervention from the police, all the taxi associations were allowed to operate. Three taxi associations operate from the Mdantsane Highway taxi rank.
The police had no report of any injuries or fatalities following the confrontation.
The Daily Dispatch understands that a group of 200 disgruntled Meta members, who broke away from Melta, were behind the clashes.
In an interview with the Dispatch yesterday Meta spokesman Zukile Mrhubatha said the standoff was to attract the attention of Melta so a meeting would be called. However they could not attend Friday’s meeting because their chairman “Mr Mphunga had another commitment in court”.
He said a new date for the meeting had been set for today at 10am at NU1 police station.
“The concerned members of Meta operating on the Phumlani route have been out of business for the past three weeks as Melta is punishing them for leaving the organisation. They are making sure they don’t get passengers for that route.”
Mrhubatha claimed Phumlani taxi operators were struggling to pay their taxi instalments because of the alleged sanctions imposed by Melta.
Melta’s Blayi accused the disgruntled Meta group of using violence to intimidate Melta members into joining Meta. — malibongwed@dispatch.co.za
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