Makhanda – The High Court in Makhanda in the Eastern Cape has blasted the South African Police Service (SAPS) for its continued failure to maintain law and order, pointing out that the small town of Ngcobo was in a state of “anarchy”.
Long-distance bus company Intercape has, for a long time, repeatedly accused police officers in Ngcobo of running away in the face of violence and intimidation by local taxi operators and leaving members of the public to fend for themselves.
Handing down judgment in an urgent application brought by Intercape, Acting Judge Brody on Friday, 21 November 2025, said it must be impressed on the police that they must comply with this order.
The acting judge warned that there appeared to be a state of anarchy in the town, and it was unthinkable that a litigant must keep coming back to court to force the SAPS to comply with its constitutional and statutory obligations.
Acting Judge Brody requested Intercape to convey to the SAPS’ legal representative the Court’s displeasure at the police’s noncompliance with its constitutional obligations, and impressed on the service to comply with this order immediately.
Intercape has warned, in court papers, that Ngcobo was in “a precarious and dangerous position, where one small incident could ignite serious violence, disorder and public harm”.
The company further warned that this could spread to other towns in the region in which the company operates.
The situation was especially volatile because of the upcoming festive season, which is generally the busiest time for long-distance bus companies.
In an urgent court application, the company stated: “Between 14 and 19 November 2025, Intercape has been the subject of a coordinated and escalating campaign of intimidation, violence and obstruction.”
In a scathing affidavit, Intercape said that when it attempted to load its passengers at the Ngcobo SAPS station because it became too dangerous to do so at its normal loading point.
The affidavit said in part: “… protest action by taxi operators recommenced and soon after the SAPS officials who were present at the Ngcobo SAPS station fled the scene, leaving Intercape to fend for itself.”
In its court action, Intercape cited the Eastern Cape SAPS Provincial Commissioner, the National Commissioner, and the Ngcobo police Station Commander as respondents.
Intercape called on the police to fulfil its constitutional obligations to protect members of the public against criminal acts.
The latest incidents come as the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry as well as Parliament investigate allegations of high-level police corruption involving crime syndicates and drug cartels, some reportedly linked to the taxi industry in South Africa.
The Intercape affidavit states:
The applicant’s drivers and passengers are being subjected to ongoing violence and intimidation in Ngcobo, with groups of approximately 40 taxi operators and/or representatives at a time forcibly preventing the applicant’s passengers from boarding its buses in the town of Ngcobo in the presence of SAPS officials who did nothing about it.
Public roads were being blocked to prevent throughfare through Ngcobo, and death threats were being made to the Intercape CEO and others should the applicant continue to operate.
The intimidation and violence were ongoing, and pose a real and imminent danger to the travelling public, the applicant’s staff, and to public order.
Intercape said in the affidavit that the events of the past week follow the fatal shooting of a woman who was a passenger in a long-distance bus operated by Makalala Trans on 12 November near Ngcobo.
On that occasion, the bus was sprayed with rounds fired from automatic weapons.
As of 20 November 2025, these failures have escalated to the point that there is a real and present danger to the traveling public, to the drivers of Intercape buses, and to the town of Ngcobo more broadly.
In the affidavit, Intercape further stated that it was no exaggeration to say that the increasing incidents of violence, threats, intimidation, and disruption over the past few days have placed the town in a precarious and dangerous position, where one small incident could ignite serious violence, disorder, and public harm.
It requires immediate de-escalation and management by SAPS.
Intercape said that on Wednesday, 19 November, it was again prevented from entering the town of Ngcobo to load and transport passengers due to roads on either side of the town being closed off by taxi operators.
“Although members of the SAPS and Public Order Policing (POP) unit were on the scene, the situation was not de‑escalated,” Intercape said.
“SAPS failed to assist Intercape in restoring the peace and protecting its property, passengers, and drivers.
“Intercape was forced to call in armed private security to assist itself to protect its buses.
“This private security eventually succeeded in restoring access to Ngcobo. However, the situation is extremely volatile.”
In the wake of the illegal blockade, provincial transport MEC Xolile Nqatha said: “We will not tolerate acts of lawlessness disguised as protest.
“The blockading of a major route, the alleged hijacking of trucks, and the deliberate endangerment of innocent commuters are criminal.
“We cannot build a transport system under siege.
“Any operator or association found to be involved in criminal conduct must face the full might of the law.”
Yet nothing has been done by transport authorities or the police to stop local taxi associations, who commit blatant criminal acts in full view of the police who are present.
Intercape CEO calls for the removal of SAPS leadership
Intercape CEO Johann Ferreira said: “The courts have made a series of damning rulings against the police, the ministers of police and transport, and their provincial counterparts, and still this violence and intimidation continues unchecked.
“We now have the absolutely ridiculous sight of members of the police running away from their own police station when confronted by members of the local taxi industry.
“South Africa is being overrun and run by criminals, as we have seen with the Madlanga Commission.”
Ferreira called for the removal of the top leadership of the South African police, to be replaced by capable, efficient, and courageous members who are committed to upholding the law and drawing a line in the sand against criminality.
He said that in May of this year, the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Police lamented the low arrest figures for the perpetrators of attacks and extortion against the long-distance bus industry.
“At the time, Mr. Ian Cameron, the Chairperson of the committee, said: ‘It remains concerning that of the 300 cases reported between Golden Arrow and Intercape, no arrest has been made by the police.
“The arrest and prosecution of perpetrators is the only logical deterrence against such cowardly acts.
“Perhaps Parliament should ask the leadership of SAPS why their members abandon their duty in the face of open criminality by the taxi industry.”
To date, Intercape has opened over 200 cases with the police, ranging from murder and attempted murder to intimidation and extortion.
The affidavit lists recent incidents which include:
- Taxi operators have threatened local businesses such as garages with boycott and even arson to prevent Intercape from loading passengers at or on their premises
- An approved permit allows Intercape to stop and load/offload passengers at a South African Police Station in the event of intimidation or emergency situations
- Despite this, local traffic officials from the AB Xuma municipality have twice impounded Intercape buses for stopping and loading passengers at the SAPS station in Ngcobo
- Intercape was forced to pay a fine each time to have the bus released
- A number of Intercape buses have been prevented from stopping in Ngcobo to load/offload passengers, leaving dozens of passengers stranded. SAPS refused to assist
- Taxi operators intimidated Intercape staff and passengers who reported that taxi operators insisted that they may only travel with minibus taxis
- On 18 November, the R61 out of Ngcobo towards Mthatha was blockaded with large stones by taxi operators who said that they want Intercape off the road
- thousands of Eastern Cape residents were forced to spend a night out in the cold and rain due to the taxi blockade
- Protestors threatened to “assassinate” the Station Commander at Ngcobo if Intercape is allowed to load passengers in the town
- A further threat was made to assassinate Intercape’s CEO
- On 19 November, taxi operators hijacked heavily loaded trucks, stole their keys, and parked the trucks across the road to block the road and prevent buses from entering or exiting the town. A similar incident occurred in May 2022 when the N2 highway was blockaded by taxi operators
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