Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga says government welcomes the Constitutional Court judgement handed on the constitutionality challenge against the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act mounted by OUTA.
South Africa’s apex court declared that the AARTO Act was valid and constitutional, dismissing civil action group OUTA’s legal challenge to the law.
According to reports, this comes after OUTA brought an application before the Constitutional Court (CC) to confirm last year’s Pretoria High Court’s judgment that the legislation was unconstitutional and invalid, stating that government will battle to implement it due to the red tape and potential for corruption.
The ruling paves the way to penalise drivers and operators of motor vehicles who are guilty of traffic or road infringements through a system of demerit points, which may result in the suspension or cancellation of driving licences.
Chikunga said the ruling affirms government’s long-held view that this a necessary law to advance the state’s efforts in arresting the carnage on the roads.
“This judgement provides clarity on Schedule 4 matters of concurrent function between the national and provincial sphere as well as Schedule 5 which is exclusive provincial competence.
“Our assertion that AARTO is part of Road Regulation and thus concurrent competence has been confirmed by the highest court in the land,” she explained.
The AARO Act, according to the Minister, is an important mechanism in the country’s road traffic law enforcement interventions aimed at arresting road deaths and altering driver behaviour.
“This will reinforce other interventions such as classifying traffic policing as a 24-hour, seven-day job alongside the regulation of driving schools and introduction of an NQF level 6 training for traffic law enforcement officers.”
The implementation of this law which has been pending for 25 years has been piloted in Johannesburg and Tshwane, the Minister said.
“With this judgement having cleared the path for the implementation of AARTO, we will move with speed to roll out its implementation across the country without delay.”
In the coming days, the Minister said her Ministry will ensure that the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) mobilises the necessary capacity and proceeds with its rollout plans across all municipalities in the country.
“We are also ready to finalise our recommendations to the President for the appointment of the Tribunal and the proclamation of the AARTO Act implementation as well as the AARTO Amendment Act,” she said.
Meanwhile, government said it will now move speedily to implement a points demerit system, an important cornerstone of the AARTO Act intended to drive motorist behaviour on our roads.
“We are pleased that this judgement not only removes the uncertainty that was created by this legal challenge but enables us to focus on ensuring that our roads are safe for all road users with penalties that will make a telling difference.”