Vehicle owners are always worried, having to think about the long distance on the gravel road to get to Mokopane, looking at how they have to drive with caution, prioritise limiting the speed and stay focused in order to be safe having to pass through the mini-dongas laying on that road.
Both day-to-day taxi drivers and taxi owners that are no choice but to transport people to Mokopane, they say they have been putting up a word that their vehicles are at a major risk, so is their lives with no one to respond to their cries. “This is just like another ‘use the road at your own risk’ board that constantly gets you unsettled,” says one taxi driver.
From The Mashashane Taxi Association, Chairperson and Mr Chidi says that at this moment, there is really none much they can do about the situation, they are tired. Further unfolds that last year, 2021. The likes of Mr Mothapo, Mr Papo , Mr Makapane and the owners of the yards and land laying on the Percy Fyfe road took the matter up with Chef Magadangele Mashashane, but sadly to date, no progress has been highlighted. One of the Q-Marshals, Phillip Manyathela says that ever since he’s been working as a Q-Marshal for more than 5 years now, He and his colleagues have been working together with political potentials, brainstorming and helping the people fighting for this matter to get through, but it is always them left with no progress as they have never begun.
“Why until this day hasn’t the road been fixed or rather considered?” The newly appointed ANCyl Ward 40 Chairperson, Molebatsa Ledwaba wonders. Furthermore, he says that both the Polokwane and the Aganang Municipality keep failing us as the community of Mashashane. “But we, as the youth league, are fighting against the issued matter on our high, best level possible and other related matters that ill-plagues our community. As Molebatsa touches on the roaming rumor of the tender owner of the tar road that was supposed to be installed at Utjane from the Ledwaba Crossing that is alleged to have flown without completing what’s due to Utjane residents.
Multiple accidents have occurred on the very same road where many lives were lost and others ended in hospital but never recovered or luckily enough to recover.
One taxi driver attests that he had witnessed several accidents happening on the Percy Fyfe road. “Our worst fear is not knowing if we are safe or not. If we are still safe, for how long?”.
During rainy seasons, it gets even tougher for drivers to drive freely at ease to Mokopane therefore their safety is not assured, as well as the passengers. Other drivers are with no choice but to travel to Polokwane first to get to Mokopane utilising the safety that comes with the tar road laying between the towns to avoid any kind of damage that may occur to their vehicles, to save themselves from whatever tragedy that comes with unsafe routes.
The question is, Why isn’t the road priotised to save those who uses it everyday and their hard earned property? What must happen first?