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The DA is using e-tolling as an electioneering strategy and is continuously misrepresenting the facts to win votes in next year’s elections and SANRAL is not going to entertain politics, says Vusi Mona, the General Manager of Communication at SANRAL.
 
“In a Parliamentary question the DA posed to the Minister of Transport a few weeks ago, we gave them our marketing advertising spend for the years 2008/09 to date. Here are the facts:
·        2008/09: R8 269 772. In that year, we did not have a separate budget for our toll portfolio

·        2009/10: we spent R6 432 337 on our toll portfolio and R14 835 731 on our non-toll portfolio

·        2010/11: we spent R7 156 311 on our toll portfolio and R23 248 325 on our non-toll portfolio

·        2011/12: we spent R54 040 275 on our toll portfolio and R30 466 863 on our non-toll portfolio

·        2012/13: we spent R74 498 041 on our toll portfolio and R12 633 674 on our non-toll portfolio


In the current financial year (with a budget R85 million) we have so far spent R23 257 989 on our toll portfolio and R1 805 627 on our non-toll portfolio.
Please take note that our toll portfolio spans more than the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project which is only 201km. SANRAL has a toll portfolio of 1 832km and has a responsibility to promote and communicate on its Alternative Sources of Funding (the selective use of tolling to build road infrastructure),” says Mona.
 
SANRAL’s position has always been that the advertising spend is proportional to its communications objectives. “Any new initiative such as e-tolling will accrue an increased advertising spend as it must be supported through marketing. It is SANRAL’s responsibility to educate road users on how to become compliant. It is also very much part of driving public awareness. One can only imagine the criticism had SANRAL not communicated essential information such as how and where to obtain e-tags. It is important to note that the bulk of e-toll related advertising is about educating the public on details on how and where to obtain e-tags, registering, e-toll tariffs and so on,” adds Mona.
 
In addition to giving an annual breakdown of the advertising spend, Mona also clarified how SANRAL’s marketing budget was allocated and what the money is spent on. “Our marketing budget is divided into two. The first component covers the Alternative Sources of Funding (tolling campaigns and PR).,. The second component covers SANRAL Corporate, focussing on  road safety, community development, bursaries and all other activities,” adds Mona.
 
SANRAL’s adverts are already being rolled out in the various media platforms and the roads agency is adamant that it will spend the allocated funds to educate the public about e-tolling, particularly the practical elements such as where to obtain e-tags, how to register, information on e-toll tariffs, among others.
 
“SANRAL understands that those who are opposed to e-tolling will try their level best to cast every aspect of it, including its marketing campaign, in a negative light. But even the fiercest critics do have some minimum standards to uphold, especially because they themselves spend on marketing and advertising for whatever campaign. E-tolling is a new project and the tolling of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project is government policy. This is not the only government or State Owned Entity programme to have a communications budget. But of course, the critics, in their intense opposition to e-tolling will pretend otherwise. We understand the politicking but we aren’t interested in it,” says Mona.
 
 SANRAL has also dismissed suggestions that the advertising spend is unjustified given its debt obligations on the toll portfolio. “We have previously clarified our approach to debt financing. We have a clear plan on how we are going to finance the R1.4 billion obligation on the toll portfolio and are concluding discussions with the banks. We have no reason to believe we will not meet our obligations when the five-year bond relating to this obligation matures at the end of October 2013. To reiterate, GFIP, which is only 201 km of the 1 832km toll portfolio, is part of only 9 percent of our 16% toll portfolio. The over-excitement on its liquidity challenges which has in the recent past led to conclusions that SANRAL is bankrupt, is totally misplaced, unfortunate and a manifestation of a level ignorance. We will step up efforts in the near future to educate our colleagues in the media and the public in general about the funding of SANRAL,” concludes Mona.