Government secrecy on crucial transport issues is unacceptable

OUTA is demanding transparency from Department of Transport and its entities over the unexplained delay in replacing the driver’s licence card machine, the failure to extend the validity of the cards, and the licence transaction fees.

“We are concerned that the secrecy is hiding problematic activities,” says Advocate Stefanie Fick, OUTA Executive Director.

OUTA wants answers on these issues:

1. Why has the procurement for the new driving licence card machine been delayed for more than a year?
2. Why has the department decided not to extend the validity of driving licences despite the cumbersome system?
3. Does the card machine procurement plan rely on retaining the five-year validity period for the cards?
4. Why won’t the department explain how it calculates the fees it charges for licences and how these funds are distributed?

The entities involved are the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) and the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA).

“OUTA has for the past few years tried to engage meaningfully with these transport entities on various issues, but to no avail,” says Fick.

Secrecy over the driving licence card validity period

OUTA wants the validity of the driving licence cards to be extended from the current five years to 10 years. The licences themselves do not expire, only the cards.

In February 2022, the then Minister Fikile Mbalula said he had commissioned the RTMC to research the extension and, later that year, said the cards would be extended to eight years. Subsequently Minister Sindiswa Chikunga said the validity period would remain five years.

In July 2024, OUTA submitted a request for information in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) to both the department and the RTMC, asking for copies of the RTMC’s research on the viability of extending the validity period.

In November 2022, OUTA filed a PAIA request to the RTMC, asking for a copy of the research report on the validity period. The RTMC refused, saying the research could not be prematurely disclosed.

OUTA believes that extending the card validity will save the public money and reduce time wasted by a bureaucracy which is inefficient and riddled with corruption.

Extending the validity period requires only a change in regulations, which the Minister of Transport can do by publishing updated regulations in the Government Gazette.

OUTA has called for this extension since September 2020, and bases this on research on international best practices in 32 countries, and has previously provided this research to then Minister Fikile Mbalula.

“OUTA questions the motives of the RTMC as the ultimate decision to extend the validity period lies with the Minister of Transport and the Minister should not be influences by an entity with vested financial interests in the decision. In simple terms, we find these reasons advanced by the RTMC to be ludicrous,” says Fick.

Secrecy over the driving licence card machine

OUTA wants to know why the procurement of the badly needed new driving licence card machine has been delayed. It is being procured by the DLCA, which is responsible for producing the cards.

The tender has been advertised and withdrawn repeatedly in recent years. The most recent tender was issued on 8 March 2023 – more than a year ago – but the award is still awaited. In December 2023, the DLCA told OUTA that the tender evaluation process was “still ongoing”. We have been unable to obtain further information.

“OUTA believes the entire tender process is shrouded in uncertainty and lack of transparency. The procurement of this machine is of utmost importance to South Africa, and we believe that the department and the DCLA should be much more transparent about this process,” says Fick.

The sole machine used for printing the cards broke down in November 2021 and was out of service until January 2022, resulting a backlog of 639 000 cards. The machine is obsolete.

The March 2023 tender document calls for the “Provision of a Turnkey Solution for Personalization of Smart Driving Licence Cards”, including the provision, installation and maintenance of the machine and raw materials for the cards, with a five-year contract. Both cards and machine must have a life expectancy of at least 10 years.

The tender sets out a timeline of nine months for manufacturing the machine (four months), shipping, commissioning and training (two months) and testing, piloting and handover (three months), but ran that timeline over a year, from April 2023 to April 2024.

The machine is thus unlikely to be in operation before May 2025 at the earliest.

The DCLA annual report for 2022/23 says it expects to spend R819 million over two years on the new card production machine and smart enrolment units. The National Treasury has allowed it to retain R280 million of its annual surplus in 2022/23 towards this.

Secrecy over the composition of licence fees

OUTA wants the RTMC to explain how the transaction fees it charges on various types of licences (see here and here) are calculated and how the revenue is distributed.

“The public has a right to clarity on these fees. When government entities generate excessive revenue, it encourages corruption and maladministration,” says Fick.

“When public bodies are accountable and transparent on how they collect and use public money, it creates a culture of confidence in government. Unfortunately, the opposite is also true that when government is not transparent and accountable to its citizens it starts to suffer from a legitimacy crisis.”

In November 2022, OUTA submitted a PAIA request to the RTMC asking for information on the composition of the fees, but the RTMC refused this request and the subsequent internal appeal.

OUTA subsequently filed a complaint with the Information Regulator over the RTMC refusal. In April 2024, the Information Regulator told OUTA its preliminary findings were that the RTMC “incorrectly refused” access. A final decision is awaited.