The Gauteng government has yet to indicate how it will fulfil the premier's promise to fix the province's driving licence system by 31 March - the end of the government financial year.
Premier Mbhazima Shilowa made the promise in his state of the province address on 20 February.
At the time, Shilowa said: "Over the past year, the driving licence booking system has not been able to respond adequately to the needs of consumers." He announced "immediate improvements" would be in place by "the end of the financial year".
"A new system, integrating SMS, telephone, Internet and walk-in bookings, will be introduced," Shilowa added. "Booking terminals will be installed at every testing centre and a direct online link created between each centre and the GSSC [Gauteng Shared Services Centre] call centre."
A series of meetings between the Gauteng finance and transport departments have since taken place. The GSSC, which reports to Gauteng finance MEC Paul Mashatile, has also been involved.
Shilowa has made the GSSC responsible for the booking system, primarily to eliminate corruption, but also to improve service delivery. However, sources at the GSSC say not everyone in the transport department, headed by MEC Ignatius Jacobs, or at the licensing centres, is keen for the centre to render this service.
The sources say the technology threatens "vested interests and personal empires" in the transport establishment, on the one hand, and greatly reduces the opportunity for backhanders and brown envelopes, on the other.
To date, numerous attempts to obtain comment from the provincial government on the progress of the proposed solutions have been unsuccessful.
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