A reactive nation is how one could sum up South Africa.
While we have one of the best constitutions in the world, we often fail to put measures in place to curb eventualities and only act after the fact. Over the years, this has been exacerbated, something that could be attributed to several things, including a lack of visionaries or individuals with a clear understanding of the law within businesses and in government. It has also been worsened by companies focusing on the bottom line. All good and well!
However, business and government attitudes should not be detrimental to ordinary citizens. The list of cases where businesses and government reacted to situations is endless.
The Buttskop crossing incident tops the list. We can take Buttskop off our concerns thanks to the inefficient rail service. There are many other incidents where businesses or the government reacted based on a turn of events. The most recent incident was in Mitchells Plain where a group of children died due to human error. While all the noise was made about ways to eradicate such incidents, we continue to see learners on our roads squeezed into vehicles.
In some cases, traffic authorities turn a blind eye, thus condoning this unbecoming conduct and putting children’s lives in harm’s way.
In South Africa, something happens today and we make all the noise. A few weeks down the line, we forget and move on. There is limited accountability and people get away with a lot of nonsense. Today, we are all up in arms about the treatment muted to 11-year-old Lifalethu Mbasana by a Golden Arrow bus driver. While this has been widely publicised, the question is how many similar cases have gone unnoticed?
As an avid public transport user, I can attest to bad behaviour by some Golden Arrow bus drivers. I have raised my concerns with the company. Yes, there are some good drivers at Golden Arrow, yet there are many rotten apples.
Since the demise of the trains, GABS and minibus taxis have become the backbone of our public transport. Thousands of people from the townships rely on buses and taxis to get to work, school and home.
This is not a free or cheap service compared to the trains. Some people work to cover their transport costs and nothing else. Passengers deserve to be treated with respect. While many took chances with the trains, there are no such things with the buses and taxis.
It is despicable to think that a driver can leave a child behind for not having a gold card. It is also hard to understand how none of the passengers on that bus could help the child. Yes, bus tickets are pricey during peak hours. Somebody on the bus could have sacrificed something to pay for Lifalethu.
The biggest villain in this is the driver. Golden Arrow has suspended him. The question is, what will eventually happen to him? Also, what is Golden Arrow doing to ensure similar incidents do not happen again?
The time is now for GABS to put its foot down and not react to situations.Their drivers cannot continue to behave irresponsibly.
