A taxi driver from Oshakati claims his livelihood has been threatened after his driver’s licence was suspended by a magistrate following his failure to appear in court for a speeding fine.
Paulus Angula, who has been a taxi driver since 1992, failed to appear in court on November 28 last year for a N$500 speeding fine he received after traffic officers caught him driving 100 km/h in a 60 km/h zone in Ongwediva.
On February 4, Angula reported to the Oshakati Magistrate’s Court in an attempt to pay his fine.
But he found fed-up Magistrate Mika Namweya on the bench who, apart from ruling that Angula pay a N$250 fine for failing to appear in court on top of the speeding fine, suspended his licence for two months.
Namweya told Angula during the ruling that taxi drivers are spoiled because they are always boycotting and demanding to have speeding fines reduced while they continue to disrespect the government and its laws.
“Are you the only ones on the road?” Namweya wanted to know.
Speaking to Namibian Sun after handing his driver’s licence in until April 1, Angula said he felt the judgment was too harsh because his taxi is his sole source of income.
“I wasn’t forced to come to the court but brought myself after I realised that I had missed my court appearance for that speeding fine. I admitted guilt and also agreed to pay for failing to appear in court as well as the fine itself. So why am I being punished three times?” said Angula.
With his daily earnings, Angula says he feeds his family, pays bills and his children’s school fees.
“What am I supposed to do for two months? How am I going to feed my family for those months? I didn’t bump or kill anyone on the road to have my livelihood threatened in this manner,” Angula complained.
Angula, who cannot afford to appeal the decision, has since approached the office of the Ombudsman for assistance.
The office of the Ombudsman agreed that it was too harsh a sentence for a speeding ticket of N$100 km/h and referred him back to the Oshakati Magistrate’s Court.
Lawyers at the Oshakati Magistrate’s Court allegedly advised Angula that it would take at least two months to appeal the magistrate’s decision and that it was best to just sit out the suspension period.
OSHAKATI MERJA IILEKA