Issued by: Department of Transport KZN
11 September 2001
A number of local authority learners and drivers test centres have been suspended from operation by the Department of Transport since Friday, 07 September 2001 and can no longer perform NaTIS based transactions to enter learners and drivers licence results onto the national computer system.
The suspended centres are at Harding, Winkelspruit and Ixopo.
A number of officials at these centres who are examiners of learners and licences have also been suspended from examining functions.
Specialist forensic investigators have been appointed in conjunction with the SAPS and Road Traffic Inspectorate (RTI) Special Inspectorate to investigate repeated and ongoing public complaints about extortion, bribery and corruption, whereby learners licences were bought without compliance with the legislative requirements - where examination procedures designed to ensure uniformity were not complied with, and, where oral learners licence tests were abused by fully literate persons, who performed only part of the oral examination due to collusion by the examiner and administrative staff.
This resulted in many more oral tests, which are usually an exception these days, that would ordinarily be the case. This was further manifested by the arrival at these largely rural test stations of an overwhelming number of applicants from other towns which have test centres such as Durban and Pietermaritzburg. These applicants apparently in pursuit of a quick and easy examination with guaranteed positive (successful) results travelled by bus and by taxi in groups with contacts and couriers in order to obtain learners and drivers licences illegally.
The following officials have been suspended by the KZN DoT as examiners and/or NaTIS clerks, however no disciplinary action is yet evident on behalf of their employers.
Mr HV Gates : Harding
Mr GA Sibiya : Winkelspruit
Mr FB Maduma : Winkelspruit
Mr I Ali : (formally Gary Colby at Harding)
The Department will not hesitate to suspend any other officials, clerks or test stations where corruption is uncovered in this intensive ongoing investigation which may lead to implicating other test centres, examiners or middle men some of whom may be in the business of teaching aspirant drivers how to drive under instruction.
This racket not only compromises road safety and flies in the face of Zero Tolerance and the Asiphephe Project, but it exploits the poorest of the poor to enrich unscrupulous officials who have no ethical standards commensurate with the importance of the functions they are empowered to provide.
All transactions for tests conducted on Friday will be captured on the system at the RTI NaTIS Help Desk in Pietermaritzburg and in this respect no member of the public will be disadvantage if they obtained their licences legally.
At each raided test centre a years worth of records have been seized in order to allow for a detailed forensic audit to be conducted.
As the investigation proceeds it is anticipated that arrests will be carried out at various centres.
The investigations and forensic audits are continuing at this time and we appeal to any members of the public which may have information to assist the investigation to contact Mr R Laubscher.
Phone : (033) 3423939 Extension 239
Fax : (033) 3942979
Cell : 082 807 8715
All information will be treated as confidential.
P.S. Illegally obtained licences will be administratively cancelled and will be useless to the holder thereof.
Issued By:
Dr Kwazi Mbanjwa
Deputy Director-General, KZN Department of Transport
082 8081 736