Cape Town – Rumours about a taxi strike taking place in Cape Town have been dispelled as old news.
A screenshot from a news article on Heart FM has been making the rounds on social media platforms.
However, Heart FM stated that the information being shared is from an article published in March.
Heart FM news editor Roi Simpson confirmed that no strike action would be taking place on Thursday.
He said this information was verified with the SA National Taxi Council (Santaco) and leading taxi associations the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association (Cata) and the Cape Organisation for the Democratic Taxi Association (Codeta).
“We’re aware that a screenshot of one of our news stories about a taxi strike on Thursday is being widely circulated. That story was published about another action taken by operators back in March 2022.
“We are taking action to try to ensure in future that our online stories are date stamped in such a way that there can be no confusion like this again.
“We’re pleading with everyone to help us stop the spread of false information, which could be quite damaging,” Simpson said in a statement.
Santaco in the Western Cape held a two-day shutdown on Monday and Tuesday.
This as the taxi industry in the province is demanding a review of the City of Cape Town by-laws under which taxis are impounded, funding for the expansion of the Blue Dot project and the commitment of the WCG to support formalisation efforts by the taxi industry.
The shutdown was not without violence as buses were torched and commuters were injured.
On Tuesday evening, however, Santaco announced that services would resume as normal.
“We thank you for your patience and understanding during the course of the stay away action.
“We apologise for the inconvenience this may have caused and ensure operations will resume effectively from tomorrow (Weds),” Santaco said.