marshall von buchenroder

Dear MyPE Another school holiday has passed and the carnage continues on our Eastern Cape roads, while the same promises are made, but no real action is taken. The DA repeats its call to Transport MEC, Weziwe Tikana, for the immediate implementation of a shift-system for 24-hour traffic law enforcement on Eastern Cape roads. Six months ago, I asked the Transport MEC, Weziwe Tikana, what steps or initiatives her Department had in place with a view of curbing the number of deaths on our roads. MEC Tikana’s response, the department is conducting road safety awareness campaigns through …

MEC dilly-dallies on 24-hour traffic law enforcementRead More

Dear MyPE The Eastern Cape death toll on the roads over the Festive Season is a sad indictment of a failing ANC government that has neglected its responsibilities. With the second highest fatalities in the country, the province saw 238 people lose their lives in 195 car accidents. This is up from the previous season, where 213 lives were lost in 173 accidents from 1 December 2017 to 15 January 2018. It is clear MEC Weziwe Tikana’s intervention strategy has failed to reduce the number of fatalities on the roads. This is simply unacceptable. One life lost is a life too many. Where …

Festive Season death toll on EC roads crisisRead More

Dear MyPE As the Festive Season gets underway, traffic safety and road fatalities will once again be in the spotlight. Unfortunately, road accidents will make this a time of great sadness, instead of a time of celebration, for many families. This also has a devastating impact on the economy, as the loss of life and injury comes at a very high cost. Between 1 December last year and January 15, 173 accidents occurred on the roads, with 213 lives lost. This is simply unacceptable. One life lost is a life too many. Freedom means being able to use roads without the fear of unlawful …

Focus on road safety this Festive SeasonRead More

Dear MyPE Provincial government officials have racked up over R1-million in traffic fines with state-owned vehicles over the past three years, showing a complete disregard for the laws of the road. In a response to a written question, Transport MEC, Weziwe Tikana, said officials driving state vehicles ran up fines totalling R1,141-million from April 2016 to the beginning of November this year. The reality is that these fines boil down to fruitless and wasteful expenditure by the departments, and shows complete disregard for law and order. MEC Tikana revealed that in the 2016/17 …

Provinicial Government officials rack up over R1-million in traffic finesRead More

Dear MyPE As the world stops and remembers the victims of road accidents this Sunday (18 November 2018), the Democratic Alliance would like to extend our condolences to the families of those who were tragically killed on Eastern Cape Roads. In response to a parliamentary question received this week, Transport MEC Weziwe Tikana revealed that between 2015 and 2017, 6,815 people have lost their lives in fatal car crashes in the province. Tikana said 1,613 people had died on our roads in 2017, including 132 children under the age of 14. As we approach the festive season, more needs to …

A Shocking number of lives are being lost on Eastern Cape RoadsRead More

Dear MyPE The Department of Transport has made it clear that the safety of traffic officers in the Eastern Cape is not a primary concern, having last issued bullet proof vests to officers over eight years ago. At a time when law enforcement officers are being targeted and brutally gunned down by criminal elements, it is simply unacceptable that traffic officials have had to risk their lives on a daily basis without the necessary life-saving equipment. In response to a parliamentary question, MEC for Transport, Weziwe Tikana, revealed that the department last issued bullet proof …

Traffic officers lives not a concern to DepartmentRead More

Dear MyPE Looking back on National Transport Month and the initiatives launched by the province, leaves nothing to celebrate. People continue to lose their lives on our roads, children are still forced to walk to schools, Taxi violence is a common occurrence, and traffic law enforcement is basically non-existent. Anyone who has driven on our provincial roads in October will tell you that not enough is being done to address issues of stray livestock on our roads, which pose significant risk to motorists. Roadshows have been conducted across the province, and much is said about …

Transport Month highlights the Department’s failuresRead More

Dear MyPE Immeasurable damage is being done to our roads by overloaded trucks which are taking advantage of the non-operational Kinkelbos weighbridge station on the N2, while the MEC of Transport remains in denial. Broken and pot-holed roads are a risk to road users and businesses who rely on trucks to get their products to market. In a response to a parliamentary question, Transport MEC Weziwe Tikana gave assurances that the Kinkelbos weighbridge station situated on the outskirts of the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality, is fully operational. Anyone who has driven past this …

Kinkelbos Station not fully operationalRead More

Dear MyPE The Eastern Cape has failed to recover a single cent of more than R110 million in outstanding traffic fines issued over the past two financial years. This despite offering an amnesty period to offenders, due to poor implementation and lack of follow-through. During her policy speech tabled in the Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature in March, Transport MEC, Weziwe Tikana announced an amnesty period for motorists who incurred traffic fines between April and September 2016, saying they would only have to pay half of the fine amount, if they came forward to pay before June 30. …

Three month amnesty fails to reclaim a single cent in outstanding traffic finesRead More

Dear MyPE The Department of Transport continues to sit idly by, paying lip service and sending condolences, while the carnage on Eastern Cape roads continues to claim lives. This past weekend, at least 22 people were killed in nine separate crashes on the province’s roads, with the death toll expected to rise as critically injured individuals fight for their lives in hospitals across the province. The accidents have been attributed to reckless and negligent driving, but despite this the Provincial Traffic Department has failed to take the necessary corrective …

Road death tolls climb while Department of Transport does nothingRead More

Dear MyPE A legislature response received from the MEC for Transport, Weziwe Tikana, reveals that the department owes contractors over R36 million. The Democratic Alliance calls on the MEC to ensure that the payment of contractors assigned to the Department of Transport in the Eastern Cape is prioritized urgently. According to the response, Head Office owes contractors the largest amount with 179 invoices equalling over R19 million, followed by in-house construction at R10 million. The response reveals that after verifying all contractors, the Eastern Cape Department of Transport has …

EC Transport Department owes contractors over R36 millionRead More

Dear MyPE The so-called amnesty carrot offered to traffic offenders in the Eastern Cape may leave them with a bitter taste after it emerged that officials of the Department of Transport are not aware of the deal. Phone calls by my office revealed that officials at the traffic offices in East London, Port Elizabeth, Graaff-Reinet and Humansdorp were unaware of the MEC’s announcement. Instead of increasing provincial revenue from fines, this may end up increasing the public’s mistrust in the system. Transport MEC Weziwe Tikana announced during her policy speech tabled in the Eastern …

Traffic fines amnesty carrot not so sweetRead More

Dear MyPE The Democratic Alliance calls on the MEC for Transport, Weziwe Tikana, to urgently provide temporary office structures for Grahamstown’s traffic officers. The Grahamstown Traffic Department office burned down on 30 September 2017 and traffic officers have been operating from a small storeroom, Department of Roads and Public Works offices as well as from the Department of Environmental Affairs office situated near the ramshackled traffic office. A parliamentary response from the MEC dated 13 March, states that the Department was in the process of finalising temporary office …

Total Change needed for Grahamstown traffic officersRead More

Dear MyPE With the approaching festive season, traffic safety will once again be in the spotlight. Unfortunately, road accidents will make this a time of great sadness instead of a celebration for many families. The Law Enforcement section of the Eastern Cape Department has a staff of only 556 people. Of this 32 people are senior management and 534 are law enforcement officers. The only way to limit the carnage on our roads is to stop motorists from taking chances driving unroadworthy vehicles, overloading, speeding and drunk driving. This can be achieved by visible policing on our roads …

Traffic Law Enforcement Lacking Ahead of Festive SeasonRead More