Motor industry association demands government accountability as NTI crisis deepens

North West Transport Investment (NTI), supported by the South African Workers Union (SAWU), protest outside the Gauteng Province Road and Transport offices on 3 February 2026 in Johannesburg. Picture: Gallo Images/Fani Mahuntsi The Motor Industry Staff Association (MISA) has demanded that the North West government be held accountable for its “inability” to resolve the ongoing crisis at the North West Transport Investment (NTI). According to the association, more than 1 500 employees of NTI, the embattled state-owned bus company, face a humanitarian crisis, while thousands of vulnerable commuters who depend on government-subsidised buses have once again been left stranded due to ongoing financial turmoil and the failure to keep the service running.

Martlé Keyter, MISA’s chief executive officer for operations, said provincial government must step up, announce a permanent solution, and be held accountable for its inability to resolve this issue after years of neglect. “It is a disgrace that NTI employees cannot put food on their tables and that vulnerable workers who depend on subsidised public transport are now paying four times more just to get to work,” said Keyter. One such commuter, domestic worker Johanna Moleka (58) from Hammanskraal, normally pays R230 per week to travel to Wonderboom in Pretoria.

Since January, she has been paying R120 per day for four taxis on the same route. “How will I feed my children if all my money goes to transport? I am only eating pap.

[paywall]

There is nothing we can do,” she said dejectedly. NTI’s employees have endured months without pay, leading to devastating emotional and financial consequences. Families have lost homes and cars, children forced out of school, with reports that some employees have taken their lives. According to MISA, NTI’s debt has allegedly ballooned from R355 million to R1 billion during the business rescue period.

[/paywall]