Yesterday I dropped my wife off at the airport around lunchtime. All was fine until I drove away and ended up in a Police road block. This is getting fairly common and have been stopped on the way to the airport as well before. Most people will think nothing of it but I know better.
If you are going to the airport to catch a flight you are normally short on time and a little stressed. If you are going to get frustrated with their time wasting you are more likely to accept their offer of a bribe. The slower they go the better chances they have of getting something out of you. I was held up in ques for around 2 hours yesterday and all they did was check my licence. I am almost 100 percent sure they were after some foreign currency. Why else would you target the airport. Not great for public relations for the country as the first thing you see is a crooked cop.
A while ago I was driving from Johannesburg to Durban which is about a 5 hour drive give or take. On that trip I was stopped 4 times and yes on two of the stops I was speeding. Each one didn't want to issue a ticket but wanted "lunch money". In the end it was so bad I took the smallest notes out and hid my wallet under the seat.
The corruption with the Police here is so bad that I put nothing past them and that is why I say ulterior motives were at play at the airport.