The High Court in Pretoria today dismissed AfriForum\u2019s application that the regulation around the expiry of driver\u2019s licenses should be revised. This means that driving licenses will currently only remain valid for five years. AfriForum\u2019s legal team is investigating the possibility of appealing. The civil rights organisation argues that the National Road Traffic Act 93 of 1996 is contrary to the 5-year validity period and leaves no room for a regulation that stipulates that license cards expire, but the application was dismissed on a technicality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The application was heard on 8 August and the verdict was announced today. According to judge AJ Strijdom\u2019s judgment, AfriForum should have brought the application within 180 days after the regulation was issued 23 years ago and is therefore not admissible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Louis Boshoff, Campaign Officer at AfriForum, the decision is a slap in the face of responsible drivers in South Africa. \u201cThis court ruling validates the Department of Transport’s license to underperform, which never expires. The department is unable to issue license cards on time, but law-abiding citizens are then fined for it,\u201d says Boshoff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Boshoff further argues that it is unfortunate that on a technical point the court refused condonation for the \u201clate\u201d filing of the review application instead of dealing with the merits of the case. The contradiction in the law is obvious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AfriForum has received several complaints from individuals who do not receive their renewed license cards from the Department of Transport on time. This results in them being fined despite every effort to remain legally licensed. The department\u2019s license card printer has often broken down in recent years and it is clear that licenses continue to expire faster than new ones are printed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Department of Transport can no longer distinguish between competent and incompetent drivers \u2013 they have failed the largest driver\u2019s license test in the country,\u201d concludes Boshoff.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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