JPSA MEDIA STATEMENT – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TO: ALL NEWS, CRIME & TRANSPORT EDITORS
DATE: 2014/04/02
SUBJECT: SANRAL THREATS OF “JAIL TIME” A GANTRY TO FAR
JOHANNESBURG – It takes a lot to shock Justice Project South Africa but when the 2014/04/02 - 18:30 Eyewitness News on Talk Radio 702 and Highveld Stereo; and subsequent bulletins thereafter led with the headline “Pay up – or face jail time”, we really thought our ears were deceiving us.
The latest attempts at scaremongering comes hot on the heels of the revelation in Parliament that SANRAL has spent R54.74 million in order to collect R50.02 million and that up to 1 March 2014, over a half a billion Rand is outstanding in unpaid e-tolls over the three month period under review.
“Clearly whoever made this threat must have come to the realisation that previous threats of criminal records and credit blacklisting – based on an Act that exempts itself from the National Credit Act – have had a limited effect,” said JPSA chairman, Howard Dembovsky.
“What SANRAL doesn’t seem to realise is that South Africans have been subjected to similar tyrannical threats by the previous regime and they didn’t cave in then – so why would they cave in now?” he continued.
It also appears that someone at SANRAL has decided to dispense with the troublesome formality of conducting trials and now feels that they can jump straight to sentencing people to jail time. After all, since all Magistrates just so happen to have their pensions tied up in the Public Investment Corporation’s (PIC’s) investment in e-tolling, there isn’t a single Magistrate in South Africa who will be able to hear an e-tolls prosecution without bias.
We suspect that SANRAL has now overplayed its hand and gone a gantry too far with its threats, and may well find that instead of managing to scare more people into compliance, they will simply strengthen the resolve of e-toll dissidents to resist, since there is absolutely no way that the courts will willingly dismantle the Gauteng economy by jailing what, at the bare minimum, will be hundreds of thousands of economically active citizens – even if they could manage the volumes.
SANRAL has a sizable pool of willing volunteers to be prosecuted if/when they decide to do so and none of them have asked for the additional 30 days to pay that is allegedly being offered. Zwelinzima Vavi, Mark Heywood, Bishop Geoff Davies, Wayne Duvenage, Fr Mike Deeb, Kay Sexwale and Howard Dembovsky have all invited prosecution by refusing to pay e-tolls.
If SANRAL chooses to pick on someone else instead, they will merely be proving that they are both, the bullies and cowards they have thus far proven themselves to be by engaging in intimidation and extortion tactics on public platforms.
Considering that the conviction rate for dangerous road traffic offences like driving under the influence of alcohol is reportedly 7.5% (Kwazulu-Natal) and excessive speed to the tune of 173km/h in a 120km/h zone has led to charges being withdrawn against Itumeleng Khune in return for 10 hours community service, it’s not difficult to see where the priorities lie. Tackling South Africa’s unacceptably high road death toll is clearly less important to the Department of Transport's SANRAL than tackling non-payment of tolls, now isn’t it?
ENDS
Best Regards,
Howard Dembovsky
National Chairman - Justice Project South Africa (NPC)
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