. This policy has been confirmed in subsequent White Papers, including the most recent one from 2022, and in law, with the National Land Transport Act of 2009 saying that commuter rail should be located"in the appropriate sphere of government".Mbalula to pass on responsibility for commuter rail in the city. The City of Cape Town already completed a business plan in 2018 and is currently developing a feasibility study for the takeover of commuter rail.
But remarks by Mmamoloko Kubayi, Minister of Human Settlements and head of the ANC’s economic transformation subcommittee, , suggest that, contrary to policy documents and legislation, the government’s stance is to resist devolution."We can’t give it to metros. On policy we would not agree, and we have not made these proposals, and this will not change," said Kubayi to the Sunday World. calling on the president to clarify whether Kubayi’s comments were, in fact, government policy.
"We are ready to re-establish a viable rail service in the best interests of commuters, and we are ready to work with national government at any time to achieve this. The fact is rail has collapsed nationally. Prasa now only transports 3% of the passengers it did a decade ago nationally. Prasa is now bankrupt, with billions lost to corrupt deals, including trains too big for the tracks. Change is long overdue," wrote Hill-Lewis.
He said his latest correspondence with Mbalula indicated that the minister’s department was developing a"Devolution Strategy", to be completed in 2024.In times of uncertainty you need journalism you can trust. For 14 free days, you can have access to a world of in-depth analyses, investigative journalism, top opinions and a range of features. Journalism strengthens democracy. Invest in the future today. Thereafter you will be billed R75 per month.