JUNGLE BOOK
Page 30
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I HAD a nice little note from a reader in Botswana this week (See letters, page 27). The newspaper cutting to which he refers comes from the Daily .News. To paraphrase it would be to dilute it — here it is in full: "Residents of Magotlhwane, Ntlhantlhe, Ranaka and the nearby lands recently expressed their dissatisfaction over the operation of a passenger bus running in the area. Some residents complained that the owner Simon Ntgwenya treats passengers in a rough manner.
-Some say the Mr Ngwenya does not allow those who went to Lobatse by lifts to return by his bus.
"To these, Mr Ngwenya said that it was not fair for his bus to go to Lobatse empty because of people being taken by unlicensed vehicles and so he will continue to leave behind those who went to Lobatse by lifts whenever they wanted to travel back by his bus.
"The other allegations were that when his bus fails to start, people who refuse to push it are forced out and left in the bush.
"It was alleged that if one had come to Lobatse by lift and wants to go back by the bus, he is only allowed in the bus if he agrees to pay a return price.
"Other allegations are that whenever his bus has killed someone's cow, he becomes hostile when asked about the incident, saying the cow has also damage his bus.
-G. Seiphetlheng, a police officer in Lobatse, confirmed some allegations as true and added that he at one time warned Mr Ngwenya to be polite to his passengers because he is making a living out of their money.
"Despite my warning,said Mr Seipetlheng, -he left a woman at the bus stop. The woman had come to Lotatse for medical treatment."
Mr Ngwenya threatened that he would rather stop transport business than carry people who had come to Lobatse by lifts.
"ThusolVlakgekgenene, an official of the transport division, said that such complaints should be brought to his office for action but at the time of going to press he had not received any.
-Many people interviewed by Daily News requested that their names should not be disclosed because they feared Mr Ngwenya would refuse them to travel in his bus if he knew their names. Mr Ngwenya's bus is the only one operating in the area."
Follow that!