The breakdown of the licence card printing machine is causing unnecessary panic in the country, according Lisa Mangcu, the acting chairperson of the portfolio committee on transport.
Outline progress being made in fixing the machine in parliament on Wednesday, Mungcu said the machine, which has been broken for almost two weeks now, might be old but that should not be used as an excuse.
He said the Department of Transport needs to act swiftly on the matter.
“The machine is old but that should not be an excuse. The transport portfolio should not at any stage be found wanting given its critical role, not only on service delivery but [also] driving the economy to new heights.”
Meanwhile, the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has suggested that the validity of driving licence cards be extended to 10 years to remedy the backlog issues and to afford the department time to get a new machine.
“[We] repeat our call that the validity of drivers licence cards be extended to 10 years so that the backlog and chaos can be sorted out once and for all,” said Outa.
DA spokesperson on transport, Chris Hunsinger, also weighed in on the matter. In a statement on Thursday, Hunsinger said Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula needs to speedily source a new machine.
According to Hunsinger, there is a backlog of more than 300 000 licences after the machine broke down in 2021. He said it took two months for the department to fix it back then.
“As it stands, the country’s licence card machine is outdated and apparently the only one of its kind left,” said Hunsinger.
“In the beginning of the year, minister Mbalula said he will introduce a new card machine that is on par with the rest of the developed world, and a new driving licence card from October 2023.
“In September, cabinet approved the replacement of the current driving licence card with one that has more secure design features. We now call on the minister and the department to speed up this process to ensure that motorists don’t face another backlog and risk of being fined.”
Hunsinger also suggested that the transport portfolio committee handle the applications and issuing of new cards to avoid relying on one machine.
“The eNatis system will coordinate information nationally on the central database system but appointments, applications, and issuing should be decentralised. This will reduce the risk of having to rely on one machine and a singular staff component,” said Hunsinger.
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