Johannesburg - The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) has expressed disappointment at the ANC’s acceptance of a new dispensation on e-tolls at the recent National General Council (NGC).
Samwu, which concluded its central executive committee meeting today, said the ANC’s posture towards the e-tolls would set the party on a collision course with the people of Gauteng.
Government earlier this year announced reduced tariff for e-tolls and urged motorists to start paying their e-toll bills.
SAMWU has dismissed the new proposals, saying they were unaffordable and did not “in any way” address the needs of South Africans.
“E-tolls do not only affect motorists but also businesses who will definitely shift the extra cost of doing business to us consumers. We therefore resolved that Samwu should through Cosatu resuscitate the campaign against e-tolls and fight for decent, reliable and cheap public transport,” Samwu said.
Meanwhile, the union has confirmed that its planned strike at City Power, which was due to begin on Monday, has been called off.
The union accuses the City Power board of failing to address issues relating to corruption levelled against the Managing Director Sicelo Xulu.
“There have since been developments at City Power, Samwu had a series of meetings with City Power management. Management has since committed to ensuring that a process of investigating the allegations that Samwu had levelled against management would be investigated.
Samwu has therefore withdrawn its strike intention at City Power so to allow the process to properly unfold,” the union said.
The strike would have plunged parts of Johannesburg into darkness because City Power supplies electricity to sections of the city.