Press Statement dated 18 May 2018
The United National Transport Union (UNTU) welcomes the announcement by the Minister of Transport, Dr Blade Nzimande, that he will be meeting with the Trade Unions in the coming months as part of his efforts to stabilize the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) but must warn the Minister to convene this meeting sooner than later.
UNTU has requested an urgent meeting with the Minister soon after his appointment in February this year to discuss the state of the embattled passenger rail agency and to submit our suggestions to saving the state-owned enterprise from complete ruin.
Steve Harris, General Secretary of UNTU, says Prasa finds itself in this crisis today because of the ongoing interference from Nzimande’s predecessors and its leadership with the constant chopping and changing of the members on the Prasa Board and crucial leadership positions are needed to keep a proper service running.
“The proper running of Prasa requires the permanent appointment of a team of leaders with the knowledge of the business and the challenges it faces on a daily basis. Prasa’s challenges have been badly neglected for so long that the state-owned enterprise (SOE) will never be able to save itself on its own.
“A holistic approach with all stakeholders on board from the organised labour to the communities that Prasa serves is needed to turn passenger rail around and to adhere to Prasa’s mandate.”
Harris says according to the National Land Transport Transition Act of 2000, Prasa is supposed to ensure that rail commuter services are provided within, to and from the Republic in the public interest, and to provide long haul passenger rail and bus services within, to and from the Republic.
“Listening to the Minister in Parliament today, it is clear that Prasa has not been able to adhere to the terms of the Act in recent years. The Minister informed Parliament that Prasa is currently busy implementing a signalling programme to replace its signalling system.
However, it was announced as early as June 2012, five years ago, that Prasa’s signalling system will be replaced. In January this year former Transport Minister, Joe Maswanganyi, informed Parliament that the new signalling system is scheduled for completion by the end of this year in Gauteng and in 2019 KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape. Considering Prasa’s track record, UNTU seriously doubts this will happen,” says Harris.
UNTU also welcomes the Ministers announcement that the construction of the Central Operation Centre for the entire Western Cape is near completion but is concerned about the Ministers silence on the status of the Gauteng Rail Nerve Centre (GNC) in Kaalfontein, Tembisa. This centre is equipped with the latest world class technology and was officially launched in October 2015, but is yet to be fully operational.
“The unfortunate reality is that South Africans don’t believe Prasa or the Government’s empty promises anymore. A year after former President Jacob Zuma launched Prasa’s new Urban Commuter Train, it is still only implemented on the route between Pretoria and Pienaarspoort, while the rest of South Africa are stuck with the old yellow Metrorail trains.
“The Minister said he was concerned about the slow pace of implementation of Prasa’s plans to implement its new rolling stock and this was one of the challenges he directed to the new Prasa board to address urgently,” says Harris.
Issued on behalf of United National Transport Union (UNTU) by Sonja Carstens, Media and Liaison Officer