By Mark N. Mengonfia-mmenginfia@gmail.com
The plenary of the House of Representatives has unanimously voted inviting top managers of the National Port Authority, APM Terminal, BIVAC, and all shipping institutions to address the issue of increment in tariffs on goods coming to Liberia.
They were invited based on a complaint filed before that august body by Grand Bassa County lawmaker, Matthew Joe.
Representative Joe has consistently written the plenary informing it that body of what he observed as violation of the rights to what is due Liberia.
The communication that prompted the plenary of the House to summon the top managements of the institutions was the recent one which alleged that there was a unilateral.
The Grand Bassa County representative in that communication highlighted that APM Terminal has increased tariffs on all cargos services by 9.67%.
The lawmaker indicated that 9.6% increment by APM Terminal is the new handling change which is equated to US$ 18.28 cents.
It was based on this information and other pieces of information gathered by the Clarence Massaquio specialized committee that made the lawmakers to have those instructions head appear.
Before reaching the decision, nearly all the lawmakers who spoke on the matter, expressed the need to have the agreement of the APM Terminal review or revoked.
Rep. Massaquio said for the Liberian government to leave the management of the Port of Liberia with a company has security implication
” We are at risk in terms of our security and also at risk financially” the Lofa District three lawmaker said.
There is a line in the agreement that doesn’t give rights to the government to review the agreement, but Rep. Massaquio say, “there is nowhere in the world that an agreement cannot be reviewed.”
Representative Rustonlyn S. Dennis who is also a member of the specialized committee that visited Ghana for fact findings recently, said the one hundred million APM Terminal claimed to have use cannot be compared to what the one hundred million used in Ghana and the level of development on ground.
Rep. Francis Dopoh said legal agreement reviews are what are needed to undo the ‘ imposed’ hard times on the people they represent.
For her party, Moima Briggs Mensah of Bong called on her colleagues to ensure that the law be repealed to give peace to the people of Liberia while Matthew Joe of Grand Bassa said the APM Terminal is not taken the people’s representatives seriously; adding that if they fail to review APM Terminal agreement, the people of Liberia will forever blame them[ lawmakers].
Representative Isaac Roland of Maryland said, “We need to hold ourselves responsible when some of those companies are not performing.”
While Edward Kaffiah of Bong in his statement called on his colleagues to just use its legislative power to revoke the agreement.
Alphonso Toweh
Has been in the profession for over twenty years. He has worked for many international media outlets including: West Africa Magazine, Africa Week Magazine, African Observer and did occasional reporting for CNN, BBC World Service, Sunday Times, NPR, Radio Deutchewells, Radio Netherlands. He is the current correspondent for Reuters
He holds first MA with honors in International Relations and a candidate for second master in International Peace studies and Conflict Resolution from the University of Liberia.