The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) is celebrating a monumental win for South Africans at the Pretoria High Court today.

Back in October 2021, OUTA challenged the constitutional validity of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act and AARTO Amendment Act. Together, these acts would create a system whereby all traffic laws, fines and proposed demerit points would be controlled via a national system.

The organisation argued that the legislation would unlawfully intrude on the exclusive legislative and executive competencies of local and provincial governments.

What OUTA was arguing then was the fact that AARTO flew in the face of the Constitution which Judge Annali Basson highlighted in their ruling.

Following this ruling, the AARTO Act and Amendment Act are declared unconstitutional and must be set aside with immediate effect. In addition, the Minister of Transport and the Road Traffic Infringement Authority are ordered to pay costs incurred by OUTA, including the costs of two counsel.

“We are very pleased with the court’s decision. OUTA believes that AARTO in its current format does nothing to improve road safety, nor does it reduce the scourge of road fatalities in South Africa. We are satisfied that the judgment will be sending government back to the drawing board,” explains Advocate Stefanie Fick, Executive Director of the Accountability and Governance Divisions at OUTA.

“This time around, we trust the relevant departments will engage meaningfully with civil society to obtain our input when developing such important policies for the country. South Africa needs effective processes enabled by fair adjudication that complies with the Constitution,” the advocate added.

It looks like it’s back to the drawing board for government, but OUTA says it will continue to keep an eye on the process in order to ensure any further legislation is in line with the Constitution and are truly aimed at improving road safety.

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