The General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (Giwusa) has noted alarming inflation figures based on the latest report released by Statistics SA for April 2026.
Giwusa president, Mametlwe Sebei, noted that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose sharply from 3.1% in March to 4.0% in April.
“The real story for working people is far more brutal,” he added.
The steepest fuel increases
Sebei asserts that the primary driver of this spike was a staggering 18.2% monthly surge in fuel prices. According to StatsSA, this price increasehas been the steepest since the current CPI series began in 2008.
He noted that this had pushed inland 93-octane petrol to R23.25 a litre in April, while housing and utilities rose to 5.2%, and insurance and financial services rose to 5.7%, all while wages remained unchanged.
“We are told that food inflation eased, but this small comfort is wiped out by the fact that transport costs, driven by diesel, have exploded.”
“A worker does not live on bread alone – they must get to work,” Sebei said.
The permanent injustice
Sebei expressed that they are tired of being told that fuel hikes are “temporary” because, for a worker commuting by taxi daily, they are real and lasting.
“History proves beyond doubt: once taxi fares go up because of a diesel price surge, they never come down – even when global fuel prices later fall.”
“This is pure price gouging enabled by government inaction,” Sebei says.
Giwusa demands a legally enforced mechanism that ties maximum minibus and taxi fares directly to the actual cost of fuel, with mandatory reductions when fuel prices decline.
‘Economic madness.’
Sebei added that the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is threatening further interest rate hikes to fight inflation, a move he called “economic madness.”
“Raising rates will not reduce the price of imported fuel.”
He claimed it would not stop a taxi cartel from overcharging, but rather increase monthly bond and loan repayments for workers, crush small businesses and co-operatives, and trigger mass retrenchments.
“Instead, we demand an immediate interest rate reduction. Workers need relief, not more punishment.”
Price Controls
Giwusa demands mandatory price controls on all essential goods and services, including:
- Basic food items (like maize meal, bread, cooking oil and milk)
- Public transportation fares (including taxis, buses, and any future rail)
- Fuel (petrol, diesel and paraffin)
Sebei said that self-regulation by corporations has failed and that no worker should be forced to choose between a loaf of bread and a taxi ride to work.
What about the working class?
Sebei also emphasised that these policies are decided by bankers, industry insiders, and appointed economists.
“Who decides these policies? Bankers, industry insiders, and appointed economists – not a single taxi commuter or factory worker.”
Public transport expansion
Sebei acknowledged that the only permanent escape from taxi cartels and fuel shocks is a massive, state-led expansion of cross-subsidised public transport. He urgently called for the full-scale revitalisation of passenger rail (Prasa) to provide a dignified, affordable alternative to road transport.
He also called for an expanded road-based mass public transport system, including buses and dedicated lanes, that is state-subsidised and fare-regulated.
Sebei asserted that a strong public transport option is the only force that can break the cycle of “fuel up, fare up; fuel down, fare stays up”.
‘Break the import dependency’
Mametlwe emphasised that the country cannot control fuel prices as long as petroleum remains a private commodity traded for profit on global markets.
He added that dependence on the importation of expensive and volatile fuel should be broken by aggressively transitioning to locally produced renewable energy (solar, wind, green hydrogen) under public ownership.
“The Central Energy Fund (CEF) must be empowered to strategically store and release oil reserves to smooth out domestic price fluctuations – absorbing spikes like April’s 18.2% before they reach the pump,” Mametlwe said.
“Energy sovereignty is price stability.”
