The South African National Small Bus Operators Council (SANSBOC) says it will approach the Public Protector and the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) over the Department of Transport Management in the North West’s failure to pay scholar transport operators for several months.

The delayed payments have left hundreds of learners stranded, as bus operators struggle to continue running routes without funding. Some operators have not received payments since November 2024.

The ongoing dispute between the department and transport operators has prompted SANSBOC to escalate the matter.

“We were in the Human Rights Commission. After the interviews, we realised that we can take it back to them as a complainant, go to the Public Protector,” said SANSBOC representative Mompati Mahura.

“The last resort will be going to the lawyers to retrieve our money with interest. Now there are going to be more problems. If they pay us now, we won’t go to the lawyers. We don’t get money with the interest because in terms of the PFMA, you must pay a person within 30 days.”

Head of the Department of Transport Management, Dr Hans Kekana, acknowledged the backlog and attributed it to inefficiencies in the internal payment process.

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“We have identified, even within our own system, some of the stages take a bit longer before they reach… There are a couple of stages that you pass through before you reach pay point,” says Kekana.

“These are the lessons that we are learning from our colleagues in other provinces… to produce a once-off order if the system allows, and then we come up with other troubleshooting mechanisms.”

Mahura also raised concerns over the condition of the buses currently operating.

“There are about 800 buses on the road because it’s about 88 routes. A mere 25 percent can be back on the road, but 75 percent of those buses. Basically, 75 percent of those buses are off the road,” he said, citing the expiry of vehicle licenses and lack of funds for maintenance.

The SA Human Rights Commission has recently launched an investigative inquiry into scholar transport in the province to examine the challenges affecting service delivery to learners.