The Tshwane Rail Traders Association has praised Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula for his “wise decision” after he told the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) to review its decision to ban hawkers and religious gatherings on the new trains.
Chairperson of the Tshwane Rail Traders Association, Paul Mohale who has led the fight against Prasa’s bid to ban informal traders, said the decision was irrational and would condemn thousands of families across South Africa to abject poverty and hunger.
“We welcome the wise decision taken by the honourable Minister Mbalula. We can see he is really Mr Fix It. We have had different ministers at the Department of Transport but none of them had the guts to fix problems at Prasa. He is the first minister doing the right thing for us, the people of South Africa, and I am talking about the poorest of the poor,” Mohale told IOL in an interview.
“We pray to God that he gives Minister Mbalula lots and lots of power to continue to lead us as the minister of transport. We appeal to him to ensure that Prasa hires a permanent group chief executive because often, it is the acting CEOs who fail our people, for their own benefits,” he said.
Mohale said a bona fide group CEO would have the depth and confidence to take time to appreciate the underlying issues affecting every stakeholder at Prasa.
“I remember well, when Lucky Montana was still CEO of Prasa, on weekends we would meet him, travelling alone on the trains, just for him to see and understand the situation. The current Prasa acting group CEO, Hishaam Emeran, is the kind of man you only see on a train when there is a big event and big cameras.
“Managing an institution like Prasa is managing people’s lives. You do not sit in an air-conditioned office somewhere and just decide that you do not want to see informal traders. These are breadwinners. These are people with children in school. We are not a nuisance,” he said.
Mbalula has thrown the distressed hawkers a lifeline, as Prasa was steaming ahead with a raft of new regulations and conditions of carriage, outlining a ban on several activities which have traditionally been practised on trains.
PRASA is requesting to reverse its ban of hawkers and prayer sessions inside the trains. pic.twitter.com/6gwKGTBPVI
— FIKILE MBALULA | MR FIX (@MbalulaFikile) December 15, 2022
Mbalula said criminality and harmful activities should be tackled by Prasa, but targeting poor people selling food and drinks did not sit well with the outspoken transport minister.
“I don’t think it is right. Stop alcohol. Deal with cleanliness on the train. No smoking. We eat inside planes, and some people clean after us.
“They even drink alcohol on the plane. Trains carry commuters with chronic illnesses. We must let them eat on the train. Even in taxis and buses, we eat,” he said in a video clip, while seated inside a moving train.
He said hawkers should be allowed on trains as they too bought tickets.
“I understand your plans to keep trains clean. Get people to clean trains, that is job creation, also,” he said.
He said people should be allowed to sell food on trains, but not alcohol.
“Do not allow smoking. Kill bad habits. Get business going. These are trains of the working class. Now, I am thirsty for instance. I cannot drink a cold drink or buy something here,” he said.
Recently, Prasa spokesperson Lillian Mofokeng told IOL that activities like religious gatherings, gambling, and informal trading, which have been commonplace on the commuter trains, are no longer allowed on the new Prasa trains.
She said Prasa had introduced the new rolling stock known as “The People’s Train” as part of rebuilding its infrastructure.
“The current rolling stock is structured differently and has open coaches. Due to this openness of coaches and oneness of the train sets, it is important not to impose behavioural system on any of our commuters. It is also in the interest of prioritising safety.
“Attached, please find our conditions of carriage, which stipulates no smoking, no trading, no churches, no gambling. We also have a Passenger Service Charter that (outlines) the service that Prasa is offering to commuters,” she said.
On the other hand, the South African Council of Churches (SACC) has also questioned the rationale behind Prasa’s controversial regulations.
“As the SACC, we take a view that, firstly, we do not condemn in any way, shape or form what Prasa is doing. We are seeking to say, let us have a conversation as a country and understand why certain decisions are taken. And key to these decisions is our view that Prasa would not take such a decision unless it is informed by something it believes is important enough to make these rules,” said Mzwandile Molo, SACC deputy secretary general.
“We are clear in our minds that the trains are part of the extension of the public square and the public experience of our people, and part of that is living with the freedom to express your religious views, freedom to share what you believe in, in terms of your faith, and we believe that kind of freedom must be counter-balanced by the experiences of those who might not want to be disturbed, wanting to be in safe, quieter space.
“As the SACC, if we understand why Prasa makes that decision, it makes it possible to say to our communities – this is the reason, and this reason makes quite clear sense, and we believe we can support it. If it doesn’t make sense, we can then find solutions with Prasa, as communities that are interested in this work,” Molo said.
-IOL
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