Picture: North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Wessels Morweng
By OBAKENG MAJE
8 March 2026- Rampant corruption and bribery allegations have been levelled against the North West Department of Community Safety and Transport Management amid systemic failure of scholar transport tender. There are allegations that some service providers are bribing traffic officers not to impound their unroadworthy buses.
The Member of Provincial Legislature (MPL) of Umkhonto weSizwe Party at the North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL), Lerato Tsholo said they condemn the alleged ongoing rampant corruption and bribery within the scholar transport sector. Tsholo said the scholar transport service providers who pay bribes to avoid impoundment of their non-compliant buses are undermining the safety of their passengers and perpetuating a culture of corruption.
“By paying off officials, and Members of Provincial Legislature (MPLs), who are doing oversight on them, these service providers are essentially buying their way out of accountability, putting the lives of innocent children and other road users at risk.
“This behaviour is not only unethical, but also illegal. So, it is high time we call it out for what it is – a blatant disregard for the law and human life. Furthermore, this practice creates an unfair advantage for those who are willing to bribe, making it difficult for compliant transport service providers to compete,” she said.
Tsholo further said it is a vicious cycle or chain that needs to be broken. She added that, instead of paying bribes, scholar transport service providers should prioritize maintaining their buses to ensure they meet safety standards.
“Let’s condemn this behaviour and advocate for a safer, more transparent transportation system. On the other hand, while condemning the behaviour of scholar transport service providers as far as bribery and corrupt elements are concerned, an appeal is thereby made to the North West Department of Community Safety and Transport Management to make sure that they pay them timeously so that they are able to maintain and service their buses to meet the compliance requirements,” said Tsholo.
Meanwhile, the North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Wessels Morweng said: “There are allegations of corrupt officials from my department and some MPLs. Corruption must immediately be reported to the relevant authorities.
“I also indicated that in the process of corruption, there is always a corruptor and a corruptee. Now, my hands are itching and if you can give me the names of those corrupt officials, I will put them on suspension pending investigation.”
Morweng said the issue of scholar transport is very painful. He said these corrupt officials go and collect bribes from service providers, which their buses are unroadworthy and risk the lives of the learners in the process.
The Guardian 