The South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) has again denied allegations by the Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (OUTA) it fabricated figures on how many e-tags have been purchased.
It is the second time SANRAL, the state-owned company which is operating the controversial e-tolling system, has denied such claims from OUTA in the last week.
“OUTA has made so many wild allegations against SANRAL in the past,” SANRAL spokesperson Vusi Mona said. “Not one of them has been found to be true by the country’s courts. In its desperation to sustain what is increasingly becoming a failed campaign, OUTA continues to make assertions about e-tolling which have no factual basis.”
Mona said SANRAL’s figures were more reliable than OUTA’s as SANRAL’s were based on actual numbers rather than a sample.
“The e-tag sales figures we have released are accurate. As a state-owned entity, everything we do is subject to audit processes by the Auditor General,” he said.
“Therefore, we have no reason to “fabricate” figures which may later be disputed by the Auditor General. Be that as it may, it does beg the question whether OUTA’s sampling methods are subject to the same rigour as our own processes. Additionally, this project also attracts the scrutiny of rating agencies such as Moody’s. There is therefore no incentive on SANRAL’s part to manufacture any figures.
“We are almost at the point where we will no longer respond to OUTA’s wild assertions which can only be described as wishful thinking on their part.”
