Pay up on the bus or be killed
21st January 1984, Page 24
21st January 1984
Page 24
Page 24, 21st January 1984
— Pay up on the bus or be killed
Close
Noticed an error?
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
WHEN FARES rise we mutter, moan and pay up. Citizens of Mdantsane in Bantustan are slightly more resistant.
They boycotted the Ciskei Transport Corporation's buses when fares were increased by 10 per cent and took to the railway. This displeased President Lennox Seba, whose police and troops leaned on the wayward commuters, killing five and injuring many others. A curfew was imposed and boycotters counter-attacked. Many more people are thought to have been killed.
As a result the fare increase was reduced to five per cent. Whether the sacrifice of lives was worth it is open to question but any British bus operator will tell you that exterminating passengers is no way to raise revenue.