Two Makana Municipality traffic officers face criminal charges following incidents during this year's National Arts Festival, while two traffic department vehicles were also damaged during the same period.
Two Makana Municipality traffic officers face criminal charges following incidents during this year's National Arts Festival, while two traffic department vehicles were also damaged during the same period.
A Grahamstown traffic officer was arrested and charged with assault during the last week of the Festival.
Police spokesperson Captain Mali Govender said the 59-year-old man was arrested on 4 July.
He appeared in the Grahamstown Magistrate's Court. He is out on warning. Another municipal traffic officer was arrested just a day after the start of Festival, on 28 June, on drunk driving charges.
According to the police the 35-year-old traffic officer was also released on warning.
Municipal spokesman Mncedisi Boma confirmed both incidents on Thursday 18 July, saying the municipality had decided not to comment on the merits of these cases to the media.
He said they were still allegations at this stage and employer-employee issues which had to be handled with care. He said both incidents had come to the attention of the head of the Traffic Department.
Boma said reports, about both the assault and the drunk driving charges had been submitted to the industrial relations officer based in the municipal manager's office.
The intention was to institute disciplinary action.
"They have been given time to reply to the allegations. We are a public institution and we understand that the public wants to know what is happening – hence we are responding to these issues; however, we must also take into account the employees' reputations," he said.
Two municipal traffic vehicles were also damaged during the Festival. The extent of the damage is not yet clear, however, according to the municipality.
Boma confirmed yesterday that two traffic department vehicles had been involved in accidents during the Festival and had been damaged.
He said there was a protocol when a municipal vehicle was involved in an accident.
"An official driving a municipal vehicle that is involved in an accident has to write a report and give it to their immediate supervisor," he said.
The supervisor, Boma said, would examine the report to determine whether the incident warranted disciplinary action, or if it was a genuine accident.
He said the supervisor's report would reveal these details. "The process is still at this stage. I cannot quantify the damage [to the cars]at this stage," he said.
