By Kristodia Otibu Asiedu/Zainab Abdul Hamid
Tema, Sept. 25, GNA – The Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders (GIFF), customs agents, and key industry stakeholders have issued a 14-day ultimatum to shipping lines operating in Ghana, to address grievances regarding their exorbitant and exploitative port charges.
The group during a protest march, presented petitions containing their grievances to several entities, including the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) Limited, Grimaldi Ghana Limited, and the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA).
The demonstrators carried placards with messages such as “Pay refunds promptly or abolish container deposits,” “Scrap demurrage on statutory holidays now,” and “Put shipping lines in line”.
At a press conference following the protest, a former GIFF president, Mr Kwabena Ofosu Appiah, explained that their demands included the abolition of arbitrary fees, such as local administrative charges and container cleaning fees.
Additionally, they were seeking an end to demurrage charges imposed during weekends and public holidays, which they argue were unjustifiable, he said.
The freight forwarders also called for compliance with the Ghana Shippers’ Authority regulations, which required shipping lines to negotiate charges transparently.
Mr Edward Akrong, a former GIFF President, emphasised that their concerns were not political, but purely focused on ensuring fairness in Ghana’s shipping industry.
He highlighted how the excessive fees had persisted across various governments, significantly affecting the cost of doing business in Ghana.
Mr Akrong said some foreign shipping companies had overstepped their boundaries, taking over traditional jobs reserved for Ghanaians, in direct violation of Section 43 of Act 891, which reserved customs-related activities for local citizens.
The GIFF demands included removing unjustified fees, cessation of customs brokerage services by shipping lines and the abolition of dollar-denominated fees.
“They are also pushing for 24-hour, all week operations by shipping lines to eliminate delays in the processing of goods, particularly during weekends and public holidays,” he said.
The freight forwarders had vowed to take more drastic actions if their demands were not met within the 14-day period, signaling their readiness to take other measures to ensure that the necessary reforms were made, to protect Ghanaian businesses and the national economy.
GNA