KOMBI OPERATORS DIVIDED

MBABANE – Some kombi operators feel that only half of the number of kombis should operate.

According to the Secretary General of the Swaziland Local Kombi Association, Sibusiso Dlamini, the kombi operators had different views on what should be done moving forward. He said other operators felt that this would affect some of their colleagues, who only owned two kombis as this would mean they would have to then be forced to only use one kombi and one driver, which may lead to job losses for the rest of the staff.

Difficult

“It is a very difficult situation for us. Operators share different views on the matter which needs to be addressed very soon,” he said. He said a lot had changed after the riots, highlighting that everyone in the business industry had been affected one way or the other, some more than others. Dlamini added that with several people losing their jobs, this had seen the number of passengers they transported on a daily basis dropping. The secretary general said the method of leaving before the kombi was full was a strategy used from time-to-time, especially on routes such as Oshoek to Mbabane, where drivers needed to capitalise on the passengers they picked up along the way. “The route from Mbabane to Manzini is the busiest, and we are sure every kombi that leaves the bus rank is always full,” said Dlamini.

According to Dlamini, operating at full scale is also an issue as it then becomes costly for operators since they have to fuel all kombis in the morning while there are less people, as well as the issue of the 6pm curfew. This means that some kombis are working at a loss, leaving operators in a split in views on what should be done to move forward so that every operator is able to stay afloat. “These are still suggestions from the operators but we are yet to discuss it further and try to come up with a solution before the end of the weekend,” he said. Several passengers have raised concerns about the transport situation as less people are going to work these days, meaning that this has delayed departure time in some areas.

Interview

In a previous interview with the drivers, they estimated that Mbabane currently had about 108 kombis that serviced the Mbabane, Manzini route, meaning that about 16 200 people travelled to Manzini using the kombis on a daily. This excludes the number of kombis that leave Manzini for Mbabane. These numbers have decreased and are likely to continue dropping since the riots, hence the call for the meeting this coming weekend.  “We had barely recovered from the COVID-19 situation which affected businesses drastically, so this is also another major blow to the transport industry,” Dlamini said.

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