Cape Town - The City of Cape Town’s crackdown on illegal and errant taxi operators in Nyanga has turned ugly with allegations that a traffic officer was threatened at her home and and had to be moved for safety reasons and a law enforcement vehicle coming under fire.
City of Cape Town safety and security boss JP Smith said that on Tuesday night some amaphela (sedan) taxi owners had “threatened a traffic officer in Gugulethu at her home”.
“We had to arrange safe accommodation for her elsewhere,” he said.
And according to Smith, law enforcement officers came under attack early on Wednesday morning.
“Staff is on high alert after one of the Metro Police Tactical Response Unit vehicles was shot at just after 6am at Nyanga taxi rank,” Smith said.
“Staff working to prevent taxi operators from blockading roads as intelligence last (on Tuesday) night indicated they would do this on Wednesday morning.”
The incidents come in the wake of major disruption in Nyanga on Tuesday when taxi drivers began stoning and setting vehicles alight.
Police and Golden Arrow Bus Service confirmed that three buses as well as a light delivery vehicle had been set alight leading to the bus service suspending operations in the area. Passing vehicles were also stoned during the unrest on Tuesday.
City traffic services, Metro Police, and the SAPS had been continuing with a crackdown on public transport traffic violators in Nyanga which began on Monday when the violence erupted.
ANA