In the 12 weeks of 2022, nine taxi owners or their affiliates have been killed in on ongoing battle for money and power.
On average, this year, nearly every nine days there is a fatal attack or revenge killing in the war over who gains control over the lucrative routes around East London and Mthatha.
At this rate there will be around 40 related deaths in 2022.
Government authorities are unable to explain the cause and taxi industry leaders are at an equal loss as to explain the increasing violence.
Members of the Uncedo Service Taxi Association (Usta), Border Alliance Taxi Association (Bata) and Mdantsane East London Taxi Association (Melta) account for the majority of the victims.
Most of the killings appear to be carried out by hitmen, prompting taxi owners to organise private security to protect themselves.
In March 2018, police minister Bheki Cele and the outgoing national police commissioner, General Khehla Sitole, visited Mthatha and closed several taxi routes in the area after a deadly battle that claimed the lives of about 60 owners, drivers and passengers.
A taxi owner, who survived a shooting, says the battle is about money and power.
“Vocal or not, you are likely to be killed in the taxi industry if you resist the quest for power and monopoly by the captains of the industry,” said the taxi owner, who asked not to be named.
“There are three sources of income in the industry: the money generated through taxi fares, premiums paid to the taxi associations, and the money that comes from the government, for example, to pay for scholar transport.
“The leaders of the industry are enriching themselves through these funds. This then leads to power struggles, in the same way it is done in the party political space.
“The moment you resist what the leaders need, you are risking yourself. Even if you don’t resist, if they see you are a stumbling block to what they need, you will be eliminated,” said the owner.
“If the leaders of the industry want control of a certain region, they will kill the chairpersons of those associations and put in the people they want as replacements, even if they are not from that area.”
A police source said it would take a long time for the violence to end because it involved police and prisoners with interests in the industry.
“Some of the taxi industry bigwigs are former prisoners. Some of the owners are in prison for the very same violence.
“The biggest issues in the taxi industry war are the rewards and protection. Some people are hired to kill rival groups in the industry and thereafter are rewarded with a fleet of taxis.
“Taxi bigwigs would hire iinkabi [hitmen] from outside the Eastern Cape and reward them with money. The problem starts when a taximan is hired to kill another taximan where the reward would be a fleet of taxis and protection.
“The protection for perpetrators comes in the form of securing a viable market, that is having as many passengers as possible in the taxi,” said the police source.
He added that some police officers were allegedly also involved in the taxi industry. “There are police officers who own taxis. Do you think they might not hinder raids and investigations into the industry?”
Another taxi owner who asked not to be named said there were former prisoners involved in taxi associations. He said: “These people were arrested for the very same violence and served their sentences but were promised lucrative stakes in the industry after their release.
“When something is not going their way, they resort to killing because they want power over the money that circulates in the industry.”
The claims that police are involved in the industry have been brought to the attention of provincial commissioner Lt-Gen Nomthetheleli Mene, according to provincial transport and community safety spokesperson Unathi Binqose.
“The police commissioner committed herself to look into the claims, so police officers can choose if they want to be police officers or taxi owners,” Binqose said.
Provincial police spokesperson Warrant Officer Majola Nkohli said: “The linkage of murder cases to taxi-related violence is complex. However, there are at least 40 taxi-related murder suspects whose cases are either set for trial in the courts or pending trial dates.
“All those cases are investigated by the provincial organised crime investigation units. Police are appealing to people to find better ways to solve their differences than to resort to violence,” Nkohli said.
Binqose said the department had met taxi owners and police in Mthatha in February “where they told us they had no major problems. But contrary to that, we keep hearing of people killed in the industry even though there is not a full-blown war.
“It is difficult for us to intervene when they say they have no bigger problems, even though they keep killing each other. We will keep talking to the industry leaders because some of their killings take place in public spaces and affect innocent lives.
“One of the things the taxi industry is highlighting as a possible cause of the violence is the involvement of police officers with interests in the industry. Some taxi owners even said they resorted to hiring private companies to protect them,” said Binqose.
NPA spokesperson Luxolo Tyali said: “Unfortunately we do not keep statistics specifically relating to taxi violence. If people are charged with murder or attempted murder, the statistics will reflect the charge, not the circumstances surrounding the murder. As you may be aware, there is no charge of ‘taxi violence’.”
In February, Cele said: “Organised crime investigation units are on board in tackling murder and robberies, as well as taxi violence in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape.”
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Hitmen are hired to kill taxi drivers, taxi bosses and associate members. Their personal vehicles and taxis are usually sprayed with bullets.
