By Kaya 959 News
The KwaZulu-Natal taxi driver accused of leaving a five-year-old boy at the side of the road is due to undergo an internal disciplinary process.
South African National Taxi Council spokesperson, Sifiso Shangase, said the driver has been identified.
He said the council has instructed the taxi association that the driver is affiliated to, to institute a disciplinary hearing.
Shangase slammed the behaviour of the driver, who reportedly dropped the Grade R pupil at the side of the road earlier this week, after the child revealed that he did not have money for his trip home.
“The driver will also have to undergo training on how to deal with the public. Today it was a little boy, tomorrow it could be an elderly person. What happens then? He needs to be taught lessons in Ubuntu,” Shangase said.
He said it was important for the driver and others to be taught about handling the public, especially when there are issues at play that are beyond the passenger’s control.
Shangase said the driver should have behaved in a better and more humane manner.
READ: Teacher suspended for assaulting Grade R child
Boy reunited with family
The plight of the Cottonlands pupil touched the hearts of thousands of people after his story went viral on social media.
Spokesperson for Reaction Unit SA, Prem Balram, said the boy had been travelling in the taxi on his way home.
The boy told the driver that he did not have money for the trip home and was dropped off at the side of the road, in Canelands in Verulam.
“The boy is unable to provide any information regarding the location of his residence, which school he attends or his parents details. A book found in his bag confirms that he is a Grade R pupil,” Balram said
RUSA posted a photograph of the little boy which went viral on all social media platforms.
It was not long before someone recognised the boy and came forward.
Balram said the boy was taken to the Cottonlands area where a woman was able to point out where the boy lived and he was reunited with his family.
READ: Taxi driver dumps schoolboy (5) at roadside for not having fare
Child Protection Week
The incident comes as SA is commemorating Child Protection Week.
Child Protection Week is an annual jolt to the apathy often felt about the plight of the vulnerable.
A recent study by the University of Cape Town has highlighted the sad lives of children living in SA.
According to a report from Stats SA, at least 60% of children are poor. The 2016 Optimus Foundation study revealed that 40% of these young people had experienced neglect and abuse of various types at some point of their lives.
Girls and Boys Town SA is urging South Africans to do a better job and help create a society in which children have safer spaces.
