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E-toll Bill remains unsigned

The FF Plus claims victory over the Gauteng e-tolling system, based on the fact that president Jacob Zuma has not signed the e-toll Bill.

Bonnie Tubbs
By Bonnie Tubbs, ITWeb telecoms editor.
Johannesburg, 06 Sept 2013
The piece of legislation that will allow Sanral to implement e-tolls on Gauteng's roads remains unsigned.
The piece of legislation that will allow Sanral to implement e-tolls on Gauteng's roads remains unsigned.

Government's controversial Gauteng e-toll system looks set to remain in a state of limbo, as the last green light needed for go-ahead - the president's signature on the Transport Laws and Related Matters Amendment Bill - hits another obstacle.

The Freedom Front Plus (FF+) said yesterday that president Jacob Zuma's legal advisors suspect the piece of legislation - commonly known as the e-toll Bill - is unconstitutional. The FF+ claims this is on the back of a legal opinion drafted by the party's advocate Anton Alberts, and says this means the Bill will be sent back to Parliament to be reclassified.

"The FF+ argued that the Bill had been wrongly tagged as a Section 75 Bill in terms of the Constitution, and that it should rather have been classified as a Section 76, or in part Section 77, Bill."

The e-toll Bill was adopted by the National Council of Provinces in May, after then transport minister Ben Martins outlined why the Bill was needed for government to raise funds to build and maintain roads.

While many are of the opinion that the ANC is reluctant to implement the widely unpopular e-toll system ahead of the upcoming elections, the Department of Transport (DOT) has denied this, while the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) says Zuma has a number of issues to deal with and that it would not push the issue.

In a statement issued by the DOT yesterday, spokesperson Tiyani Rikhotso said Sanral is technically ready to implement e-tolling, and that motorists should get tagged in preparation for the launch.

Meanwhile, the Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) is gearing up for its day in court in just under three weeks' time, and has accused Sanral and the DOT of ignoring fundamental cracks in the system - including the impact non-compliance will have.

Alex van Niekerk, project manager of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project - out of which e-tolling was born - says Sanral has been ready to start tolling for over two years, but that poor government support has caused delays in the requisite Bill being signed.

Presidency spokesperson Mac Maharaj would not comment on the claims made by the FF+, saying only that the Bill is "still receiving the attention of the president" and "once he has taken a decision the public will be informed".

Toll probes

The FF+ says it is also in the process of formulating a request that the auditor-general investigates Sanral's media/marketing expenses - which Outa and other opposing parties have tagged as wasteful and fruitless expenditure.

"A formal complaint with an urgent request from the FF+ to halt all advertisements in the media pertaining to the Gauteng e-tolls is already with the Advertising Standards Authority."

Alberts says the latter complaint was submitted due to "misleading" advertisements regarding the cost impact of the e-toll system.

He says the party will support all other attempts to prevent the government from continuing with the implementation of e-tolls.

In response to Outa's claims that Sanral knew of the ills of tolling from the start, but chose to ignore these, spokesperson Vusi Mona says the agency litigates in court - not in the media. "Sanral is not willing to engage on Outa's opinions, as we have a case with Outa on appeal."

Outa's appeal will be heard in the Supreme Court of Appeal on 26 and 27 September.

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