Agents picket bonded terminal over lack of handling equipment

Freight forwarders and licensed Customs agents recently halted operational activities of Hanover General Bonded Terminal over non-functioning handling equipment at the facility.

The agents who stormed the premises of the facility in numbers demanded to see the owners of the facility to find out why it was charging their importers without rendering any service.

According to the enraged agents, Hanover has held inbound trucks on the roads for two weeks because of their inability to discharge or load containers on trucks which, in turn, has led to congestion of cargoes.

ALSO READ: More than 100 migrants storm border of North African Spanish enclave

Addressing the crowd in order to drive home their demands, the Treasurer of the Tin-Can Island chapter of NAGAFF, Mr Okwudili Onwudinjo, said that there have been several complaints from freight forwarders against Hanover General Bonded Terminal on the inability to clear consignments from the terminal.

The NAGAFF official said, “We have been receiving a lot of complaints from freight forwarders here in Tin Can port in respect to what Hanover is doing to them.

“Some of them have been here for the past one or two weeks. Hanover management could not even offload containers for examination. Apart from that, the same Hanover people are charging agents five thousand naira everyday for bringing containers here.

“Those that are ready to load their containers cannot go because there is no forklift. Apart from that, if you watch the access road inside this Tin Can, it has been blocked by containers that are supposed to go into their terminal.”

Speaking further, Onwudinjo said their demands from Hanover include to stop the collection of N5,000 forthwith, as well as to get handling equipment to load and offload containers awaiting in their terminal, among others.

“Our demands are as follows: they should go and get equipment to offload and load containers. The N5,000 demurrage they are collecting from agents everyday should be removed; they should liaise with ports and cargo, TICT and even the shipping companies to see what they can do on the demurrage that freight forwarders are paying.”

Efforts to get the management of the terminal were abortive as a lady, addressed as the company Accountant, who addressed the freight forwarders declined comment to journalists who witnessed the agents protest. The company accountant was however heard telling the agents that the N5000 being charged the agents will be cancelled.