The Taxi Relief Fund (TRF) is not a fraud, as claimed by the Department of Transport, and individuals making such statements are urged to stop.
The fund was created to help those who suffered greatly during the COVID-19 harsh lockdowns, including minibus taxi drivers, cab drivers, and e-hailing drivers.
The government stated on Sunday that it had learned with concern about rumours spreading that the TRF is a fraud and that qualified and eligible taxi operators were being dissuaded from applying for it.
“The department can certify that TRF is not a fraud, thus we urge taxi operators who have not yet applied to do so to disregard all false information,” the statement reads.
Taxi drivers have until March 31, 2023, to submit an application for the relief fund; however, the Department encourages drivers to submit their applications as soon as possible.
A one-time ex-gratia sum worth R1.135 billion was allotted by the government to minibus taxi and e-hailing service owners who have active operating permits as of March 2020.
“On March 30, 2021, the government released the initial directive for the relief of taxi operators.
This was due to the fact that in South Africa, the taxi business absorbed the majority of the restrictions placed on meetings and general movement in an effort to stop the COVID-19 pandemic from spreading.
“Taxis were first only permitted to carry 50% of the capacity of their licenced vehicle, and this was later expanded to 70% when the lockout limitations were loosened.
The department stated that the business also had to deal with rising costs for purchasing sanitizers for passengers and cleaning supplies for cars.
The cumulative result of all of these was a falling income base and rising costs for the business, which left many operators fighting to maintain their financial stability.
The TRF was formally introduced by the government in Sandton, Gauteng, in January.
On March 2, 2022, the government issued a directive outlined in the Schedule on the taxi relief fund toward the impact of COVID-19 in the taxi industry in accordance with regulation 4(7) of the Regulations made under section 27(2) of the Disaster Management Act in order to expedite beneficiary registration to receive such relief funds.
The National Empowerment Fund (NEF), an implementing organisation responsible with disbursing the fund on behalf of the department, has been supporting taxi operators with the process of claiming their relief monies since the fund’s debut in January.
“The cab drivers have been receiving finance support through the TRF call centre as well as through direct interaction with NEF staff members.
The government and NEF have already travelled to six provinces to help taxi operators claim their funds, according to the department.
The provinces that have been visited so far are KwaZulu-Natal, the Northern Cape, and the Eastern Cape, along with Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Free State, North West, and the Western Cape.
“The Department is still hopeful that the fund will assist the industry in continuing to operate after the COVID-19 outbreak.
It is impossible to overstate the importance of the taxi sector, which accounts for millions of travel trips annually and nearly 80% of worker transportation in the nation, according to the department.