Lungiswa Mfana-Mabija is the new force in taxi industry leadership. Elected unopposed in the Eastern Cape, she has strengthened her position as SANTACO’s first woman national chairperson following the recent national elective conference held at the Birchwood Conference Centre in Boksburg, Ekurhuleni.
When Mabija was announced as chairperson of the national taxi industry’s umbrella body, OR Tambo Hall erupted in ululation as delegates welcomed a new era and a more diverse generation of SANTACO leadership.
Delegates congratulated her and urged her to stand firm in defending ordinary taxi operators.
“You are not chairperson of women’s affairs, but a leader for all taxi operators in your role as national chairperson,” one delegate remarked.
Business Support
Halfway Toyota executive Sizwe Mahlangu congratulated Mabija as SANTACO’s first national chairwoman and encouraged her to serve the taxi industry through her strategic oversight of the organisation’s business activities and governance structures.
“We wish her well in her new role and hope she has settled in and become familiar with the challenges facing her office. These include operating licences, strengthening the organisation’s capacity to respond to operators’ concerns, managing expectations from financial institutions, maintaining government relations, engaging OEMs and advancing the long-awaited taxi subsidy,” Mahlangu said.
Balancing roles
Mabija told TaxiWorld that she balances her national and provincial responsibilities with ease because the national chairperson role is not full time.
“If it were a full-time position, I would have had to relocate closer to the national office in Pretoria,” she said.
According to the SANTACO constitution, only the president, secretary and treasurer serve full time.
She said SANTACO’s constitution clearly defines her role and responsibilities, empowering her to oversee sub-committees and prepare reports for the governing structures to consider and implement.
“I understand the responsibilities of serving as chairperson at both national and provincial level, and what my office requires under SANTACO’s constitution,” she said.
“As SANTACO national chairperson, I chair several sub-committees, including those responsible for business, governance, policy and disciplinary matters,” she said.
First national women chairperson
Asked about the significance of becoming the first woman to lead SANTACO as the organisation marks its 25th anniversary, she said:
“Yes, becoming the first woman to serve as SANTACO chairperson is significant in a male-dominated executive. However, I am not the first woman to serve in the national structure’s highest decision-making body. Other women came before me, so women’s representation did not begin with me. What is historic is that this office is now held by a woman,” she said.
She cited Dudu Maphumulo, who has represented the women’s desk in SANTACO’s national structures for the past eight years, serving in the National Office Bearers, National Executive Committee and Management Committee.
She said she has not experienced discrimination or disrespect as a woman since taking up both roles.
“When I arrived, I was welcomed and valued. I felt I would be judged by my work and character, not my gender. I also do not expect special treatment because I am a woman,” she said.
Mabija said SANTACO’s national leadership has been welcoming and supportive. 5 July – 30 August 2026 Her province experienced instability and leadership disputes between 2022 and 2026, but stability returned after she assumed leadership.
“Before 2022, when our province was led by uMama Mahashe, a woman leader, it did not experience taxi-related violence or killings. The same was true during my leadership. People therefore have hope and confidence in women’s leadership in the province, which is why I was brought back uncontested,” she said.
The Eastern Cape leader has shown tenacity and determination in defending the rights of taxi operators and commuters, making her rise to senior positions unsurprising to many.
Industry Support
Mabija said the support she received at both the SANTACO provincial and national elective conferences, where she was elevated to the powerful roles, reflects the trust and confidence taxi operators have in her leadership at both national and provincial level.
“We are proud to see her recognised and appointed to senior leadership in the taxi industry. Her work ethic and leadership earned her a national office position. We expected it, and it happened,” said Macdonald Ntantiso, deputy chairperson of the Port Elizabeth and District Taxi Association.
Eastern Cape taxi mother bodies, including Border Alliance, Uncedo, the Eastern Cape Taxi Association and the Mthatha Owners Taxi Association, have thrown their support behind Mabija’s leadership.
Ntsikelelo Gaehler and Songezo Mpanza, leaders of the influential Uncedo and Border Alliance taxi bodies, endorsed Mabija’s leadership and encouraged her “to foster unity, serve operators and drive change and growth in the industry”.
Mentorship
Mabija was mentored for years by the late Eastern Cape SANTACO provincial leader uMama Mahashe, fondly remembered as the region’s mother of the taxi industry, who helped prepare her for the demanding role she now holds in the male-dominated sector.
She says her leadership is not defined by gender; “abilities speak for themselves”.
Mabija said her focus is on driving change in her province while supporting the national office in speeding up service delivery for operators.
Her priorities include restoring indefinite taxi permits, reviewing the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme to better benefit operators and ensuring the promised taxi subsidy is implemented without delay.
Technology & Taxi Industry
She said the taxi industry is at a crossroads and must embrace technology or risk being left behind.
“It is time for the taxi industry to embrace technology. We have no alternative. The speed at which we adapt to technological changes will determine how we remain relevant and competitive in the transport business in general,” she said.
Relations
Despite holding influential positions as SANTACO national chairperson and provincial chairperson of one of the country’s largest taxi regions, Mabija remains humble and accessible to ordinary taxi operators and commuters alike.
2026 Eastern Cape Provincial Leadership:
• Lungiswa Mabija – Chairperson
• Mxolisi Ncoliwe – First Deputy Chairperson
• Sandile Sefolo – Second Deputy Chairperson
• Mtutuzeli Madwarha – Secretary
• Nico Moshoeshoe – First Deputy Secretary
• Bongani Seti – Second Deputy Secretary
• Khanyisile Royi – Treasurer
• Themba Mnyamana – Deputy Treasurer
• Johnson Yawa – Training Officer
• Khaya Mpeqeka – Public Relations Officer
