On Friday, the Western Cape High Court dismissed SANTACO‘s application for an interdict against the impoundment of their taxis by the City of Cape Town.
SANTACO loses taxi impoundments court case: Here’s everything we know
The Western Cape High Court issued its ruling on Friday, delivering a blow to SANTACO’s application to prevent the City of Cape Town from impounding their taxis.
The court’s judgment stated that the applicant’s request for relief is denied, with no order issued regarding costs. This decision signifies that the court does not see sufficient legal grounds to grant the requested interdict.
“Having heard counsel for the applicant, the first respondent and the second respondent, it is ordered that in so far as it may be permissible in law and will not result in the contravention of any law. That the balance of the relief sought by the applicant is dismissed, that there shall be no order as to costs,” the court ruled.
The court’s ruling comes two weeks after SANTACO led a violent taxi strike that claimed five lives and resulted in the damage of infrastructure, torched Golden Arrow buses and the looting of businesses.
The organisation’s concerns revolved around what they perceived as excessive impoundments and the resulting impact on their operations.
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis expressed his approval of the court’s ruling. He emphasised that the court concurred with the City’s proposal for the agreement between SANTACO and the municipality to be recognised as an official court order.
“The court agreed with our request that the agreement that was signed between Santaco and the city be made as a formal order of court and that it be stuck and published by all parties,” Geordin-Hill reacted.
The dismissal of SANTACO’s interdict application implies that the City of Cape Town retains the authority to impound taxis when necessary.
This verdict underscores that taxis can only be impounded for specific infractions, which notably excludes violations of operating license conditions.
Operating off-route and other infractions directly tied to operating licenses fall outside the scope of impoundments, a point of contention between SANTACO and the City.
Nceba Enge, the deputy chair of SANTACO in the Western Cape, expressed the organisation’s satisfaction with the outcome.
He noted that the ruling clarifies that taxis can only be impounded for offences that do not pertain to their operating licenses.
Enge pointed out that the exclusion of operating license violations from the impoundment criteria refutes claims made by certain public figures within the City’s administration, which SANTACO viewed as damaging to the industry’s reputation.
While the court’s decision may quell some of the tensions between SANTACO and the City of Cape Town, the broader issue of regulating taxi operations and addressing concerns on both sides remains.
