News24 | These are Checkers Sixty60’s best drivers – officially

Monsuru Oshineye was the highest-performing driver in the Checkers Sixty60 team last year, and one of many winners at the group's Pingo driver-recognition awards.

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They are a mainstay on South Africa’s roads.

Now Checkers Sixty60 and other drivers in the Shoprite group have been celebrated at the annual Pingo Driver Recognition Awards.

Pingo Delivery manages the last-mile logistics and driver network behind Sixty60. Their drivers take to the roads from Cape Town to Kuruman, delivering millions of orders across 997 locations over the last year.

Last week, the group honoured 37 nominees within the network at an event in Cape Town, with the focus on rider safety, delivery performance and customer satisfaction.

There was also special recognition for an Instructor of the Year and Operational Team Leader of the Year.

READ | Matric pupils deliver fashion items out of Sixty60 bags at school ‘Met Gala from Trash’

“Congratulations to all of this year’s winners,” said Andy Ridge, general manager: digital commerce at the Shoprite Group.

“These awards celebrate the people who consistently set the standard for those around them. Delivering at this scale is a remarkable achievement, and behind every order are drivers and operational teams who make it possible every day.”

With every household now familiar with the men and women in teal, here are some of the faces behind the orders making it on time to homes around the country:

Checkers Driver of the Year

• Blessing Matukutire, 45 - Eastern Cape: Based at Checkers Queenstown, Eastern Cape, Blessing completed a staggering 99.15% of his 15 834 deliveries on time, and he has a five-star customer rating.
• Bheki Ntetha, 34 - KwaZulu-Natal: Based at Checkers Margate, KwaZulu-Natal, Bheki completed 6 599 deliveries with a 98% on-time delivery rate and a five-star customer rating.
• Louis Ciza, 35 - Western Cape: Louis completed 5 925 deliveries from Checkers Uitzicht, with a 99.27% on-time delivery rate and a five-star customer rating.
• Bruce Aruho, 34 - Gauteng North and Limpopo: Bruce completed 6 834 deliveries from Checkers Cresta, Gauteng, maintaining a five-star customer rating and achieving a 98.6% on-time delivery score.
• Monsuru Oshineye, 50 - Gauteng South and Northern Cape: Monsuru is the network’s highest-performing driver, having completed 17 304 deliveries since joining Pingo in 2023. Based at Checkers Kuruman in the Northern Cape, he has maintained a 99.09% on-time delivery and a five-star customer rating.

Winners and nominees (left to right): Sakhile Mbuyise, Bheki Ntetha, Shaun Chetty, Hlengiwe Cindy Msomi, Abduli Mdletsha, Felix Khumalo, and Mlungisi Vezi.

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Increased focus on safety and training

The Pingo team is backed by a growing team of instructors and operational specialists. Pingo’s Urban Rider defensive driving course was developed by the Motorcycle Safety Institute (MSI) and has trained more than 5 600 riders.

There are also 21 instructors operating across 31 training sites in South Africa.

As a result, training awards were also handed out for Training and Operational Team Leaders (OTL) of the Year:

• Hlengiwe “Cindy” Msomi, 37 – OTL of the Year: Coastal
• Nicholus Mphuti, 44 – OTL of the Year: Inland
• Ruan Venter, 36 - OTL of the Year: Outlying
• Sakhile Mbuyise, 40 – MSI Instructor of the Year

Sakhile, who joined Pingo in 2024, relocated from Richards Bay to Durban to support driver training. He has trained 475 drivers over the past year and has consistently been rated “excellent” by his trainees.

“Winning this award is both humbling and incredibly rewarding. I am passionate about helping drivers develop the skills, confidence and mindset needed to stay safe on the road, so to be recognised in this way is a real honour,” commented Sakhile.

Sakhile Mbuyise won the Instructor of the Year award.

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Hlengiwe Cindy Msomi won the Operational Team Leader of the Year: Coastal award.

Supplied/Shoprite

Other Shoprite group winners include:

Shoprite Driver of the Year

• Wayne van Wyk, 21 – Coastal
• Mosimane Maseko, 34 – Inland North
• Tlhobogang Manyeke, 29 – Inland South