Johannesburg - Gauteng police are still investigating separate incidents amid attacks on e-hailing service providers Bolt and Uber in Soweto, south of Johannesburg.
The latest incident this week took place on Monday, when an e-hailing service provider’s car was set on fire at Protea Glen Mall. The attack followed vicious attacks that left three cars burned, others damaged, and two people physically injured after being shot at Maponya Mall.
One driver succumbed to his injuries following last week’s attack. At this point, there is no confirmation, but reports suggest that traditional taxi drivers are allegedly behind the attacks.
Gauteng provincial spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Mavela Masondo said no arrests had been made yet but the police were investigating.
Gauteng Traffic Police spokesperson Sello Maremane said the department was organising law enforcement operations around the area to diffuse the tensions among taxi operators.
"Our public transport intervention unit is responsible for monitoring public transport operations, including buses and taxis. They are also responsible for making sure that our commuters are safe," said Maremane.
Uber said it was investigating the incidents.
"We are shocked and deeply saddened by the recent incidents; this is something no one should ever go through. We take any incident of this nature very seriously, and our safety team is investigating these incidents as a matter of urgency. We are in close contact with the police and stand ready to help law enforcement with their investigation," he said.
Bolt spokesperson Mahlodi Molekane said crime against ride-hailing drivers continued to be a national issue of great concern, and the safety of passengers and drivers that used the Bolt platform was of the utmost importance to them.
"Bolt has currently suspended certain custom pick-up and drop-off points at the Maponya Mall to ensure that drivers and passengers are safe while we assess the situation. Bolt has also ensured that these changes are communicated to our drivers. We have also escalated the issue with the management of Maponya Mall and the SAPS, including crime intelligence, in order to ensure that the matter is closely monitored and to support the criminal investigations currently under way," said Molekane.
She said Bolt condemned criminal conduct and violence of any form directed towards ride-hailing drivers because it believed that everyone had the right to earn a living and move around without risk of harm, intimidation, coercion, or fear of death or injury.
"It is important to note that Bolt does not compete with minibus taxis; public transport has multiple modes, and Bolt acts as an important component of multimodal transport and is an important option available for passengers," she said.
A victim whose car was torched is Kabelo Makhesane. He is his family’s breadwinner, but his car was not insured.
He said that on Thursday he was driving to the ATMs at the mall with his sister to get cash and buy food.
The Star