"Harare Rank Barons Rake In Over US$1 Million Monthly From Kombi Operators"
Public transport operators in Harare are urging authorities to tackle the issue of rank barons, who are reportedly collecting over US$300,000 per week from more than 3,000 registered transport operators at bus terminuses and ranks in the city.
According to the operators, these rank barons and touts are extorting money from all kombis, including those in different associations and independents not affiliated with any association.
They achieve this by charging between US$1 and US$3 per kombi for a minimum of five daily trips. The exact amount depends on the time of day and passenger demand.
Ngoni Katsvairo, Secretary General of the Greater Harare Association of Commuter Operators (GHACCO), said all terminuses and ranks are under the control of touts.
Katsvairo estimated that these criminals could be collecting over US$1 million per month from this illegal activity.
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The operators are calling for immediate action to put an end to this exploitation and restore order to Harare’s public transport system. Said Katsvairo:
They collect at least US$2 and up to US$5 per trip depending on route. Most kombis do four to five trips per day from the rank thus almost US$1 million is being lost to these space barons per month, money which can be used to upgrade our fleet or develop the ranks like putting up security cameras, ablution facilities, repairing rank tarmac, sheds and lighting.
As GHACO we have about 1 200 kombis but all ranks in the CBD are occupied to full capacity by 3 000 public service vehicles affiliated to various associations.
It is our wish that ranks be controlled by associations and their employees who have their vehicles in ranks.
They should do this in conjunction with council enforcement. This is the only lasting solution to bring order and sanity to the public transport sector.
Katsvairo said the rank barons wield considerable power. If a transport operator refuses to pay them, they are barred from loading passengers for their next trip.
He urged the Harare City Council to deploy municipal police and called for the national police to support legal operators and eliminate these criminals.
The Zimbabwe Union of Drivers and Conductors (ZUDAC), another major association in Harare, also called for the removal of the rank barons.
However, Council spokesperson Stanley Gama, responding to The Herald, denied that some illegal pirate kombi ranks in the CBD operate with impunity. He accused associations of working with the rank barons. Said Gama:
The issue of rank barons is tricky. Some rogue associations themselves are cultivating this vice. Some of these barons are affiliated to the associations.
We have asked associations to disown these people by not paying them money. If forced to pay they are supposed to report the cases to the police who are more than willing to react and arrest the culprits… no reports have been received by the police or by municipal police.
The council believes that 9,000 of the more than 12,000 kombis operating in Harare are operating illegally to some extent.
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