E-tolls not needed for Nkandla: Zuma
While president Jacob Zuma did not bring up the controversial e-tolls system in the State of the Nation Address to Parliament on Thursday (13 February), he says it should not have been politicised.
Sapa reported that when the president was asked to comment on the e-tolls controversy on Friday (14 February), he said the tolls were essential to the development of South Africa’s economic heartland, and joked that they were not necessary, for example, in Nkandla – his home village in rural KwaZulu-Natal.
“Gauteng is the heart of our economy and it must develop more than any other place. This matter was discussed for a long time… if you are in Gauteng, if you want the economy to develop quicker, you must create the conditions for it.”
“I think the matter has been politicised, unfortunately, beyond the level it should be,” he said.
Last year, Zuma sparked controversy when he spoke in support of the e-tolls, saying: “We can’t think like Africans, in Africa, generally. We are in Johannesburg, this is Johannesburg. It’s not some national road in Malawi.”
His spokesman Mac Maharaj apologised on Zuma’s behalf for the comment.
Earlier this month, the president voiced his concern about incorrect billing by the SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) for e-tolls in Gauteng.
“We are often told electronic things don’t commit mistakes. I think it is unacceptable because it is causing an unnecessary problem,” he said in an interview.
“You can’t then bill people wrongly. It is a matter that needs to be fixed, and be fixed very quickly because it undermines an efficient system.”
He said Sanral had to deal with the problem.
E-tags
Sanral, meanwhile, dismissed claims by the Opposition for Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) that as many 71% of motorists have not bought an e-tag, the electronic device which enables motorists a concession for Sanral’s e-toll system.
Outa claimed that it conducted research which revealed that seven in 10 of a sample size of 2,700 vehicles – counted during peak hour traffic at nine different on/off ramps during early February – did not have e-tags fitted.
Responding to Outa’s claims, Vusi Mona, GM of communications at Sanral said: “We have more than one million e-tag registrations with a weekly average of new registrations of 35,000 to 45,000.
“This will definitely be higher during some weeks when key account holders come on board. This comes to approximately 66% and not 29% as stated by Outa,” Mona said.
Reporting with Sapa
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