What is really happening behind closed doors at Sanral?
The Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) aims to put pressure on the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) to come clean about the number of e-tags registered, revenue collected, and its handling of complaints.
Outa spokesperson, John Clarke said that it is making good progress in collating and analysing the complaints it has received from angry motorists, following the implementation of e-tolls on Gauteng’s freeways on 3 December 2013.
These complaints, Clarke said, will be mediated to the Public Protector before the weekend.
Earlier this month, Outa said it had received complaints running into the thousands from people regarding incorrect and threatening e-toll bills being sent to them via e-mail and SMS.
“What is abundantly clear so far is that allegations of dishonesty and the violation of the right of access to information is supported by the evidence” said Clarke.
“So let’s put pressure on Sanral CEO Mr Alli to tell us what is really happening behind the closed doors of the operations centre in terms of e-tags registered, revenue collected, handling of complaints, etc.”
Outa has also questioned Sanral’s claims that close on one million e-tags had been registered to date. The auditor general’s office was set to begin its audit of Sanral this in January, ahead of the financial year end on March 31.
DA E-tolls Billboard
Legal pressure on Sanral
Outa also noted on its Facebook page that a private group, known as “FAIR E-TOLL BILLING” has mandated Findlay & Niemeyer Attorneys to proceed with a matter compelling Sanral to comply with the Consumer Protection Act, and the Constitution.
“Though OUTA are not driving this Declaratory Order, they will provide supporting evidence from many complainants, and offer their moral support for this independent legal case,” Clarke said.
He said that the private group aims to have this Declaratory Order heard in Court in February.
“The benefits to you (and fellow citizens) is enormous from this Court Order. It establishes the consumer fairness boundary that Sanral must abide by. It sends a significant compliance message to Sanral from the Courts. It assists another group to lodge a much more significant follow-on legal challenge to abolish e-tolls as an unjust law,” Outa said.
The Democratic Alliance has also submitted papers to the High Court in November 2013, arguing that the legislation governing e-tolling was incorrectly tagged and should be declared unconstitutional.
It says that its legal case has been set down for 4-5 March 2014.
Similarly, the Tollgate Action Group (TAG) is also forging ahead with a court case to have e-tolls declared unconstitutional.
“Based on legal opinions, the TAG is convinced that the e-toll Act (sic) is unconstitutional, that the regulations were issued illegally, and that the e-toll launch date had been announced erroneously,” said spokesman Anton Alberts, who is also a Freedom Front Plus MP.
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