Durban - Young drivers are the biggest source of trouble on the roads. This is according to KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport head, Sibusiso Gumbi.
He said this at the launch of a regulatory framework governing driving schools at the Pinetown testing ground in Durban last week.
Deputy president of the South African National Taxi Council, Boy Zondi, welcomed the launch of the framework.
“All driving schools in South Africa are important as they teach people all the aspects of the car and driving. Many drivers in the province have gone through a driving school.”
He said although people started driving schools to make a profit, this did not mean they should shirk their responsibility in creating safe drivers.
“Profits should not be worth more than people’s lives.” said Zondi. He said driving schools should start clearing up their problems like the taxi industry is doing.
REGULATION NEEDED
Representative for KZN driving schools, Jeff Nkosi, said: “Many years have gone past and nothing has been done in regulating driving schools.”
He said the industry had been struggling for years to get recognition from the department.
“We are committed to training drivers who have a positive attitude. We have seen many drivers on the road who give other people the finger”.
He said he wanted there to be no corruption within the industry.
“We want to inculcate a high-level of professionalism within the industry and produce the best instructors.”
He said the document that was being launched today was not rigid but “dynamic” as changes could be made to it as time went.
A LONG WAIT
Nkosi said: “We want protection from officials who own underground driving schools” referring to traffic officers who owned driving schools of their own.
He said it was “alarming” that when a person registered to have their driver’s test they had to wait more than nine months for it.
Gumbi said the framework document has been in the work since 2011.
He said one of the priorities of the government was job creation and the regulation of driving schools would help towards achieving this end.
Gumbi said before, when they talked about the KwaZulu Natal Road Traffic Act, it discussed the teacher and the instructor but it never discussed driving schools and this had left a “vacuum” in the act.
“South Africans are very aggressive, South Africans are very angry, South Africans are stressed and impatient” said Gumbi.
YOUNG = TROUBLE
He said young drivers were the biggest source of trouble on the roads.
He said they would need help from the driving schools when implementing the laws.
Gumbi said an instructors’ training manual had been created and an office has been set up that would deal with issues pertinent to driving schools.
“All driving schools should be registered.” said Gumbi. He said with the formalising of driving schools, they should ensure they engaged in fair employment practices.
He said the high amount of competition within the industry had led to some driving schools taking short cuts when they trained the drivers.
“CANCER OF CORRUPTION”
Gumbi described this as a “cancer of corruption” happening between the schools and government officials.
He urged people from driving schools to report government officials who were corrupt.
KZN Department of Transport spokesman, Kwanele Ncalane, told the Daily News the framework was already being implemented.
“We are trying to professionalise their business. There will be minimum standards the driving schools will have to adhere to,” said Ncalane. And a manual that will guide driving schools has been produced.
Ncalane said the manual was currently being distributed to driving schools so the department could get their views on it.
“We want to produce drivers who are afraid to break the law. To do this we start at the driving schools.” said Ncalane.
He said the department was doing its best to fight corruption within it and gave the example of the Mandeni testing ground where people who were accused of graft were prosecuted.
Driving school owner Wosiyane Nzama, said the regulation of driving schools was important for them.
“It is very important and historical for us. The three years we have been going up and down between Durban and Pietermaritzburg have not been for nothing” said Nzama.
He said they have been experiencing problems of fly-by-night driving schools, which sullied the reputation of the the genuine operators.
Daily News