By Pempho Nkhoma

Blantyre, November 20, Mana: Minibus Owners Association of Malawi (MOAM) has clarified that the current transport fare hike is not permanent and has assured the public that the fares will get back to normal once the fuel situation normalizes.

In an interview with Malawi News Agency (Mana) on Wednesday, General Secretary for MOAM, Coaxley Kamange said for now people need to understand the situation, saying the raise in fares is due to the current fuel crisis.

“With the fuel situation, some people are buying at higher prices from the black market while others are finding fuel from far places which forces them to raise the transport fares to break even with what they have spent,” he said.

However, Kamange condemned other minibus operators who still charge higher transport fare despite buying fuel at recommended pump prices.

“We appeal to those that have bought fuel at standard prices to charge normal fares so that they will not be disadvantaging passengers,” he added.

In a separate interview, President for Passengers Welfare Association of Malawi (PAWA), Don Napuwa expressed disappointment with the situation, saying fuel shortage does not imply change in prices.

“They are taking advantage of the situation to benefit more because the shortage of fuel does not mean that that the price has to change,” he said.

Napuwa urged government to intervene, saying it is government’s responsibility to look into issues of transport for its citizens.

“Public transport needs to be handled by government because leaving it to the private sector is not helping the passengers, our friends in other countries like United States of America (USA) and South Africa have robust public transport systems managed by the government and they do not experience such issues,” he said.

There has been a rise in the fares by minibus operators in the country where in some cases passengers are being asked to pay between K700 and K1000 on a distance that normally cost K500.