Moloto resident and street vendor Johanna Mokwele had to start using her car in the early hours of the morning to go and sell at the nearby bus rank due to a shortage of 51 Putco buses that were torched on Monday night in Mpumalanga.
Speaking to Sunday World at the Moloto bus rank near KwaMhlanga in Mpumalanga, Mokwele, 48, who lives in the Moloto area, has been selling at the Moloto bus rank since 2004 and has been using the Putco bus since.
She said every morning between Monday and Friday she usually boards a Putco bus at 3am. She arrives at the bus rank at 3.30am to start selling.
Logistical challenges for vendors
However, it was a different story on Tuesday and Wednesday morning as no Putco bus arrived at 3am to pick her up, prompting her to use her car.
She said the shortage of buses also led to her getting less customers on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Mmatshabo Mashao, who lives in KwaMhlanga, said on Wednesday she missed work. Mashao works in Silverton, Pretoria. She said she usually boards the bus in KwaMhlanga at 3.45am and arrives for work at 7am.
The to-and-fro trip by bus costs her around R400 weekly (R80 per day). However, she spend R180 on a taxi on Tuesday alone when going to work and coming back home.
Commute to and from work affected
“On Wednesday, the bus did not arrive on time, and I did not have money for a taxi. I could not go to work on Wednesday,” said Mashao.
A KwaMhlanga teacher who spoke to Sunday World on condition of anonymity, said he also arrived late at work on Tuesday and Wednesday.
“The torching of the buses was bad, and it is affecting us. We are struggling to get buses because it is a first come, first serve basis now,” he said.
Putco spokesperson Lindokuhle Xulu said the total cost of the buses torched is an estimated R250-million. The torched buses had four cameras each inside and a smart tab system for ticketing. He said approximately more than 3,000 commuters could be affected by the arson attack.
Xulu said there are unresolved tensions between Putco and the taxi industry in Mpumalanga. But he did hasten to add that Putco is not attributing the arson attack to the taxi industry.
“It is a known thing in terms of the tensions that have been mounting between the taxi industry in Mpumalanga and Putco. But it is not us speculating that the taxi industry is involved. We are not saying it is the taxi industry [responsible for arson attack],” said Xulu.
Group of 35 suspects torched the buses
Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brig Donald Mdhluli said 51 Putco buses were torched by a group of 35 armed suspects driving in a white Toyota Quantum, Vito Minibus and a VW Polo.
The suspects wore black clothes and balaclavas. They stormed into Putco depots in Mpumalanga and torched the buses. Two employees were injured during the attack. One was shot in the leg, and the other was physically assaulted with a chair. Both victims were taken to hospital for medical treatment.
Sixteen buses were burnt at the Moloto depot, near KwaMhlanga. While 35 buses were burnt to ashes at the Siyabuswa depots (18 in Maphotla and 17 in Thabana).
Two male suspects, Isaack Mabena, 29, and Luthando Trevor Skosana, 37, were arrested on Tuesday night. The arrests were in connection with the torching of the buses in Thabana.
Two suspects arrested, charged
One of the suspects was found in possession of a mobile phone belonging to one of the victims. A magazine for a 9mm pistol without ammunition was also found in his possession.
The suspects appeared at the Mdutjane Magistrate’s Court in Siyabuswa on Thursday. They are facing charges of armed robbery, essential infrastructure charge, malicious damage to property and possession of suspected stolen property.
Their case was postponed to February 6 for bail applications. The state intends to oppose the suspects’ bail.
