CAIRO - Since strikes have been launched by bus drivers of the Public Transport Authority (PTA), many citizens have not been able to find a means of transport to get to their workplaces. Microbus drivers have taken advantage of this crisis by increasing their fares, which has exacerbated citizens' suffering, and dividing their journeys into more than one section, thus further increasing the cost of the overall journey and provoking people's anger. For instance, the journey from the Al-Haram (pyramid) district in Giza to the central Ramses Station area is divided into three sections: Al-Haram to Giza, Giza to Al Tahrir Square and from Al Tahrir Square to Ramses Square. 'One person's loss is another's gain' is a saying applied by the microbus drivers when crises occur, such as a lack of fuel, to justify raising their fares, and now this bus strike. These microbus drivers ignore the law and exploit the chaos and security vacuum dominating this current phase in Egypt. Some microbuses are known to also run without licenses or registration plates, and are in a dangerous operational state. The Minister of Manpower Ahmed el-Borae issued a statement, in which he said that he had found a solution to the problem of public bus drivers seeking pay increases, whose strikes had lasted for a couple of weeks. However, PTA drivers and other workers refused to suspend their strike, stressing that they will continue their work stoppage until a statement is issued pertaining to paying their allowances and meeting their other demands. In the absence of any control by the authorities concerned and lack of effective traffic police to deter microbus drivers from raising their fares and committing other malpractices, citizens have become the victims of the situtation. Mohamed Abd el-Qawei, an engineer told Al-Akhbar daily Arabic newspaper that drivers of microbuses and taxis are the only beneficiaries of the public transport strike. “I work at the Ministry of Agriculture in the Dokki district of the Giza Governorate, while I live in the Abbasiya district of Cairo Governorate. I was paying only LE1.5 daily [for my transport]. After the strike started, I have been spending at least LE4 daily, because I am forced to use microbuses, which have raised their fares, to get to work”, he said. Mohamed Saeed, a civil servant remarked that he has to pay LE3 daily now and was paying only LE1.50 a day. He doesn't know what he can do if the situation continues as his monthly salary does not exceed LE400 and has to cover all his living need including the children's expenses, food and rent as well as transport.
