Fake news reports about an impending taxi strike have spread fear among Cape Town commuters who are still recovering from the traumas of the past week’s violence.
Cape Town taxi strike is fake news, SANTACO confirms
In a statement released on Monday, the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) confirmed that contrary to reports spread by reputable publications such as Briefly, “there is no strike planned by the industry.”
“What is being circulated around is fake news,” the taxi association wrote.
SANTACO’s statement comes on the heels of fearmongering reports made online about a looming protest, less than a week after industry leaders and the provincial government reached a settlement.
According to reports now debunked as fake news, Cape Town industry associations were supposedly planning the second coming of the devastating strike that claimed five lives and resulted in the damage of infrastructure, torched Golden Arrow buses and the looting of businesses.
While it is true that SANTACO had, on Monday, convened for an urgent meeting over the City of Cape Town’s recent impounding operations, no indication has surfaced from the taxi association of another strike.
“We have an urgent meeting. Just pray that there in that meeting the way forward will be different. We decided on Friday that we are going to take the city to court. So, we are going to submit our court order and interdict against the city and the MEC,” SANTACO provincial treasurer Ivan Waldeck told eNCA on Sunday.
In a statement addressing City of Cape Town MEC for public safety JP Smith confirmed that messages of an impending strike were “intended to cause misinformation and confusion.”
“Such messages only result in unnecessary panic and must be condemned in the strongest terms,” Smith said.
Contrary to comments made by Waldeck, Smith revealed that “all previously expressed details of the negotiation agreements remain in place.”
“These include the agreement from SANTACO that no strike may be called without first escalating any concerns to the Mayor and Premier, and that no strike may be called without first giving the public a notice period of at least 36 hours,” he noted.
