South African transport giant declares war on taxi mafia

Intercape CEO Johann Ferreira has declared war on the taxi mafia after refusing to adhere to their extortion demands.

Ferreira, who runs Southern Africa’s largest bus operator, told BizNews that the conflict started in 2016 when the taxi operator started to question the validity of Intercape’s bus permits on specific routes.

There were meetings with the local authorities and the provincial regulatory entities responsible for issuing the permits.

“Nothing could be found wrong with our permits, and we continued with our services,” Ferreira said.

This was the start of a low-level war. When the taxi bosses saw they could not legally stop Intercape, they went underground and started attacking the buses.

“They started to victimise the drivers and the passengers and threw stones at buses. They also prevented passengers from boarding and disembarking the coaches,” he said.

When this did not work, they escalated their actions, which included shooting at the Intercape buses on certain routes.

“They assaulted the drivers and passengers, stopping buses at the bus stations in the Eastern Cape and pulling passengers from the buses, armed with guns,” he said.

“It escalated to a point where a driver was murdered. Many passengers were injured. Drivers were injured. Passengers were traumatised. Our staff was traumatised.”

What is particularly concerning is that the police made no effort to arrest anyone despite 194 pending cases.

Intercape could not take legal action against the taxi industry, as it is impossible to find the bosses behind the scenes.

“You don’t get a real address. You don’t get a real name. Nothing is real. Everything is underground and undercover,” Ferreira explained.

Instead, Intercape launched legal action against the South African Police Service, which failed to protect them. They achieved multiple legal victories.

On 10 July 2024, Intercape announced that it had won its fifth court battle over this matter, including cases against the Police and Transport Minister.

The MEC, the national police commissioner, his Eastern Cape counterpart, and the national Department of Transport have been locked in a years-long legal battle with Intercape.

In September 2022, Intercape won a court order against then-Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula and provincial officials to develop a comprehensive plan to protect buses and travellers.

Intercape said the government did nothing despite numerous cases ranging from assault, vandalism, intimidation, and murder being reported to police.

“Not a single arrest has been made. Since 2015, the company’s buses have faced a barrage of attacks by taxi drivers and associations seeking to defend their turf,” the company said.

“Several passengers have been injured, and two years ago, one of Intercape’s drivers was shot dead.”

Ferreira said the ruling must end the authorities’ resistance to their duty to protect South Africa’s citizens.

“It is a classic example of the government’s incompetence and lack of interest in protecting the people of South Africa,” he said.

The company said that, despite this being the fifth judgment in Intercape’s favour, none of the other rulings had spurred the government and police into action.

Ferreira said he will continue the fight despite costing the company millions of rands and the toll it takes on management and employees.

“I will not rest until justice is brought forward and somebody is held accountable. I’m not going to stop,” he said.

He explained that it is not about the money. “It’s about the lives being threatened, people being traumatised, and an innocent man who lost his life,” he said.