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The Intercape Bus Company says a coach with family members of a slain driver was stopped by taxi operators from proceeding to his home in Dutywa in the Eastern Cape for his funeral due to take place on Saturday.
Thirty-five-year-old Bangikhaya Machana was shot outside the company's depot in Cape Town on 25 April and died in Tygerberg Hospital three days later.
Intercape CEO, Johann Ferreira, said the incident happened on Friday when the Intercape coach with mourners was “chased away” by taxi operators.
He said the coach proceeded to the Dutywa police station to try and offload the mourners there but were followed by the taxis leaving them no choice but to go to Mthatha.
“The coach with mourners eventually returned to Dutywa on Friday afternoon under police escort after Intercape appealed to senior provincial police to intervene.”
Ferreira said the Long Distance Coach industry is facing unprecedented levels of violence, including shootings and incidents of rock-throwing by rogue elements in the minibus taxi industry.
He said in the space of just 13 months there have been over 150 recorded violent incidents, a number of which have led to serious injury to industry employees and passengers.
In response to an inquiry, Eastern Cape Police spokesperson, Brigadier Tembinkosi Kinana, said "no complaint was brought to the police in relation to the threat of violence from the taxi operators."
He said the bus driver "only became suspicious when he was approached by taxi operators" who allegedly denied that there was a problem but wanted to see the bus.
Kinana said that is when he took the decision to drop people at the police station. He said there was nothing to suggest any "threat of violence directed at the buses at the time."
