The Lautoka High Court has issued orders that 23 taxi permits that were deemed to have been obtained illegally from the Land Transport Authority cannot be used.
Othe owners of the permits went to court, seeking an injunction against LTA.
“It has been brought to my attention that on the complaint made by the Respondent LTA, the FICAC is further investigating the matter with the view of prosecuting all the individuals involved in this illegal scheme,” said Justice Mohammed Mackie in his July 17 ruling.
“Thus, this Court should not lend its hand to such illegal activities.”
“I must put on record that the Applicants, possibly, being partners of this illegal activities should not have attempted to abuse the process of this Court in this manner, and their Solicitors too, being the officers of Court, should have exercised more caution in bringing this kind of Applications before this Court, when the Court is burdened with urgent and important matters.”
“The Applicants were aware of the tainted history of all these illegal permits. The Solicitors for the Applicants too should have become aware of the propriety of these permits and there was a cabinet decision which has frozen the process of issuing new permits.”
“When there is a decision of this nature by the Cabinet, the Solicitors should have been vigilant in filing a substantive action of this nature, moving for injunctive orders on it, unless they decided to move this Court by way of judicial review, if it was appropriate.”
The 23 applicants were ordered to pay LTA $2,500 in court costs.
