The rise of shooting targeting taxi drivers in Port Shepstone CBD threatens the community safety and livehoods.

 The rise of shooting targeting taxi drivers in Port Shepstone CBD threatens the community safety and livelihoods.

Written by: Sithandiwe Ngwazi.

The taxi violence in Port Shepstone has reached an alarming level as several drivers have been shot and killed by unknown gun men in the past few weeks, The latest incident occurred on Monday when two drivers were gunned near the Port Shepstone taxi rank.

According to the witnesses the gun man fired more than 10 shots at the victims who were standing outside their taxis, and they sped away leaving the victims lying in a pool of blood, the police and paramedics arrived shortly after the shooting, but the victims were declared dead on scene.

The motive for the shooting is believed to be related to dispute over routes and permits since rival taxi associations compete for lucrative routes and customers, many community members have expressed their fears about using taxis as they feel that they could be caught in the crossfire or become targets of revenge attacks.

The local government and police have condemned the taxi violence and vowed to take swift action to restore law and order in Port Shepstone, the mayor and the lieutenant said that they will have an urgent meeting with the taxi association representatives to address their concerns and find a peaceful solution to end the conflict and that more police officers will be deployed for protection.