License Test Bribing Bastards!
Our driver licensing system is failing us!
Yes, I blame the licensing system which aids and abets and harbours its select guilty examiners and its nepotized “contacts” as its bastard illegitimate children in one corrupt family supposedly in charge of waging a war against road deaths. Not only has it lost all control, but it spawns, it breeds by the day, it perpetuates bad faith, and it clearly fosters narcissism, selfishness and greed as a replacement for job satisfaction.
Referring to these nefarious bastards as such, I believe they fit the definition of vicious, despicable, thoroughly disliked persons and illegitimate children of a system meant to serve and protect. Moreover, integrity is swept so deep under the rug that it seems I’m the only one that can remember the word means adherence to moral, ethical principles and soundness of moral character, with honesty being a pre-requisite.
In short, I am of the opinion that a certain element of our licensing system is the moral hazard factor at the gravesides of too many to count.
I will always remain proud of my reputation although I still feel the sting of the authority’s slap in my face. Gone are the days when I could proudly say that not one of my clients ever succumbed, or were the victims of bribes. My pristine record has now indelibly been tarnished. Everything has changed forever.p>
I advise clients to NEVER book tests at this particular test station in the example below, since the outcome of their test will always be uncertain, but I have just so much influence over what clients will do, specially if they will be doing the driving test in their own car. The truly saddest part is that I have had one legal, successful test at this testing station early last year, if memory serves.
Here’s my one and only “from the horse’s mouth” example of how the public is extorted and brainwashed into paying bribes to get that desperately needed license…
My client’s mom, Mrs. X writes as follows:
‘ Here is how it happened:
When my younger son booked for his bike learners he met this man called *Mr. X, who hangs out at *Testing Station X. For a couple of hundred Rand he helped him jump the queue and get his booking. We were battling to get *James a booking for his drivers that wasn’t a three month wait. So James phoned Mr. X and went to see him.
For a sum of R500 he managed to get James a booking within 2 weeks. When James made the booking Mr. X said that if he brings R2500 on his test day then he will be guaranteed a pass. I juggled this one around in my brain for the 2 weeks. I did not feel that paying that sum of money was the right thing to do. James should pass on his own ability!
The problem is that James has been driving to varsity every day illegally and it was a huge concern for me. He used to have a licensed friend to go with him but he was no longer available. If James had had an accident as an unlicensed driver it would automatically have been his fault and I would have had to pay out a huge fortune to have somebody’s car repaired – or it could have been worse, if someone got injured.
So after much deliberation I withdrew the money. I blame the system – if it was easier to get a booking – we would have just kept at it without paying any bribes.
When we got to the test station James discovered that he had left his booking receipt at home. We met Mr. X as we walked in and he took James straight through to a counter where they issued a duplicate receipt. He then asked if we had brought the money. We said yes. James handed it to Mr. X, who then gave it (or some of it) to his brother.
His brother then went off to find out who would be testing James. Somewhere along the line he managed to have a chat with the lady, *Examiner X. I did not see any of this happening.
James did his test, then Mr. X came to me and said that James had made a couple of mistakes and the examiner would require more money to ‘overlook’ them. I do not know if any of this is true, but he managed to get another R300 from me. I think that the examiner got about R500 from the deal, but I could be wrong.
Then James reappeared with a form marked ‘pass’ and it was all over.
Mr. X is just an organiser of note who has seen a gap in the system and is abusing it to his own benefit. I think he said that his father works there somewhere too. I don’t know how often this occurs, but I am pretty sure it happens often, and it’s quite a lucrative business for those involved. ‘
*Names have been changed to protect against further abuse by traffic officials and nefarious others on a wider scale, further down the line…
*James had been a client of mine for some time. He’s awake, aware, and responsive with excellent intuition, hazard awareness, perception of danger, and remarkable road-sense. Since I have trained him myself, I can truly say he CAN drive and he’s not just a wishful license applicant. On his first test some months ago, at a more reputable testing station, he made one technical error for which he failed. Legally.
I advised him to book another test at the same testing station as a sorta “revenge test” so he could prove to himself that he was fully prepared for his test and that, since he knew that his failure was a technical one, he could easily avoid it next time. The bribed test he was subjected to above is really water under the bridge now, but since I’ve seen the results his mother faxed to me, I can say that nowhere is there any trace that he wouldn’t have passed legally.
In fact, I could see the examiner trying her best to rack up points, but she failed miserably, so he paid at least R 3100 too much, to pass legally. Ironic, really.
To those guilty “contacts” and examiners I just want to say:
“Sies, man! Don’t you have any skaam?!!!”.
- it is NOT fair on those that refuse to pay bribes
- It is NOT fair on those that do not have the money to pay bribes
- it is NOT fair on those of us on the road when you release armed and dangerous people into our midst
In fact, It is SO unfair on SO many levels, it’s bloody unconstitutional!
The only consolation I have is that, you, yourself, rack up your own Karma. Regrettably, your loved ones may the ones to die at the hands of the unskilled applicants that “passed” unjustifiably through your hands.
To those examiners that still have the integrity to do their job by the book, I want to let you know that you can fail my applicants whenever it is that they do not deserve to pass…any time! I also wish to thank you from the bottom of my heart that there are a handful of you I can still trust – I DO know who you are, and I DO appreciate your honesty.
While I DO understand the plight of parents who have to get their kids to varsity and would rather see them licensed at any cost, I can never condone fuelling a system that rewards greed that put the safety of all road users – pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, and drivers – at risk.
To the aspirant drivers’ parents out there that read this I just want to categorically state that you are most welcome to do whatever you feel is in your best interest. Anything other than moral, however, is NOT going to happen in my car, on my watch and with my reputation at stake
Please consider the fact that all your complaints about the system is perpetuated when paying a bribe, leaving ripples in the pond for the next person…who can’t get a booking either…and so the cycle continues.
On this sad note, I leave you to ponder the fact that ANY person, however powerless they may feel against the tide, HAS a choice. But will they make that choice?
Will you?
