How e-toll panel can trump government
The Democratic Alliance (DA) says that Gauteng premier David Makhura can take action if national government refuses to review national legislation on e-tolls.
It follows reports that transport minister Dipuo Peters would reject any findings from the advisory panel on e-tolls, set up by the Gauteng premier.
Peters reportedly said that the national government would not change its position on the controversial e-tolling system, despite the findings of the advisory panel, set up to assess the economic, social, and environmental impacts of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), and e-tolls.
The outcomes of the hearings, currently ongoing, will be presented in a report to the Gauteng Provincial Legislature in November.
Makhura has insisted that he will act on the findings of the e-toll panel, while ANC officials in Gauteng are reportedly concerned about the system’s political impact on the ruling party.
John Moodey, DA Gauteng Caucus and Provincial Leader underlined several proposals for the premier to consider, “if he is serious about achieving an actual outcome from this review panel”.
“Firstly, he can obtain a court interdict to stop the further roll out of e-tolling in the province,” Moodey said. The DA said that phase 2 of the e-tolling project will see at least a further 300km of the province’s highways tolled.
“This has already been done successfully in the DA-governed Western Cape where Sanral’s plans to introduce e-tolling were stopped in their tracks,” the party said.
“Secondly, the premier could declare an inter-governmental dispute in terms of Section 41 of the Constitution and the 2005 Intergovernmental Relations Framework Act. This is a constitutional mechanism which allows the provincial government to enter into mediation with national government over the issue of e-tolling,” Moodey said.
A third option would be for the Premier to call a provincial referendum in accordance with Section 127 of the Constitution, giving Gauteng’s residents the power to accept or reject e-tolls, the DA said.
“So far the premier has shown great resilience to Minister Peters’ opposition to the e-toll review panel. However, it remains to be seen whether the premier will act upon what is the only obvious outcome of the panel’s findings,” Moodey said.
More on e-tolls
E-tolls will not be scrapped: JPSA
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