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Cape Town - It is not too late for President Jacob Zuma to scrap e-tolls, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) said on Tuesday.
"We believe it is not too late for comrade Zuma to consider scrapping this system. We are making a humble plea to the ANC to listen to us before it is too late," said Cosatu's Gauteng secretary Dumisani Dakile.
The provincial Cosatu branch declared December 3, when e-tolls went live, as "Black Tuesday" for the poor, Dakile said in a statement.
"It will represent the day on which our government refused to listen to the views of the people and the poor.
"They have demonstrated their stubbornness and unwillingness to cooperate with workers and the working class."
Dakile said e-tolls might have put a strain on the relationship between Cosatu and the ANC, and that Cosatu would evaluate its support of the party at its 2015 congress.
The trade union federation also confirmed its determination to fight for e-tolls to be abolished.
"We will continue to mount campaigns on the freeways, hunger strikes, sit-ins, lunch hour demonstrations, stayaways and civil disobedience by not buying e-tags and also not paying for the e-tolls."
It will also encourage motorists who have bought e-tags not to register and not to open an account with Sanral, adding that registered users should de-register.
"We call upon all those who have registered to de-register and it is on this basis that as the federation we are developing a de-registration form."
It said the form will be available to the public and can soon be accessed on the Cosatu website.
The federation union appealed to the ANC to engage with them "to find the most sustainable solution to this fiasco".
Said Cosatu: "We believe that there is still time to intervene and scrap this unjustified system in the province before it is too late."
Respect the law
The ANC on Tuesday urged South Africans to respect the law, reported Sapa.
Spokesperson Jackson Mthembu said the government calls for restraint from all members of society against mobilising for lawlessness.
Sapa reported Transport Minister Dipuo Peters as saying that the e-tolls system was implemented after due consideration, and that it is in line with the country's transport policy.
"Sanral did not just wake up one morning, and decided that it was going to toll certain sections of Gauteng highway," she said.
"We are very disappointed that some of our citizens and leaders, including those who have in the past styled themselves as champions of the rule of the law, will not this time around accept the rule of the law," said Peters.
*What has your experience of the new e-tolls system been like? Share your thoughts.
"We believe it is not too late for comrade Zuma to consider scrapping this system. We are making a humble plea to the ANC to listen to us before it is too late," said Cosatu's Gauteng secretary Dumisani Dakile.
The provincial Cosatu branch declared December 3, when e-tolls went live, as "Black Tuesday" for the poor, Dakile said in a statement.
"It will represent the day on which our government refused to listen to the views of the people and the poor.
"They have demonstrated their stubbornness and unwillingness to cooperate with workers and the working class."
Dakile said e-tolls might have put a strain on the relationship between Cosatu and the ANC, and that Cosatu would evaluate its support of the party at its 2015 congress.
"Going to congress in 2015, we will need to ask if it's worth it for Cosatu to continue to support the ANC. What will be the response of our members? I can't predict," he said.
Hunger strikes, sit-ins on cardsThe trade union federation also confirmed its determination to fight for e-tolls to be abolished.
"We will continue to mount campaigns on the freeways, hunger strikes, sit-ins, lunch hour demonstrations, stayaways and civil disobedience by not buying e-tags and also not paying for the e-tolls."
It will also encourage motorists who have bought e-tags not to register and not to open an account with Sanral, adding that registered users should de-register.
"We call upon all those who have registered to de-register and it is on this basis that as the federation we are developing a de-registration form."
It said the form will be available to the public and can soon be accessed on the Cosatu website.
The federation union appealed to the ANC to engage with them "to find the most sustainable solution to this fiasco".
Said Cosatu: "We believe that there is still time to intervene and scrap this unjustified system in the province before it is too late."
Respect the law
The ANC on Tuesday urged South Africans to respect the law, reported Sapa.
Spokesperson Jackson Mthembu said the government calls for restraint from all members of society against mobilising for lawlessness.
Sapa reported Transport Minister Dipuo Peters as saying that the e-tolls system was implemented after due consideration, and that it is in line with the country's transport policy.
"Sanral did not just wake up one morning, and decided that it was going to toll certain sections of Gauteng highway," she said.
"We are very disappointed that some of our citizens and leaders, including those who have in the past styled themselves as champions of the rule of the law, will not this time around accept the rule of the law," said Peters.
*What has your experience of the new e-tolls system been like? Share your thoughts.
