The La Nkwantanang-Madina Municipal Assembly (LaNMMA) has met with leaders of the various transport unions who operate at the VRA lorry terminal in the municipality on Tuesday, June11, 2024

The meeting was held following a directive from the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council (GARCC) for the Assembly to engage the stakeholders. A section of the drivers’ union had earlier sent a petition to the GARCC for intervention on the high increment in pay-as-you-load fee introduced by owners of the lorry terminal.

In her opening remarks, Madam Adjabeng said the meeting has been called at the instance of the GARCC concerning a letter received from Greater Accra Secretariat of the GPRTU. She said in the said letter, DECOBUILD, owners of the transport terminal is reported to have increased the pay-as-you-load by a hundred percent. A development the GPRTU say was affecting its members.

According to her, transport business are regulated by government and that there were guidelines for all transport operators, especially regarding fares.

The MCE stressed that the Assembly’s fee fixing guidelines does not allow for over 10 percent increment and therefore the terminal owners should have conformed to the rules.

Explaining their side, a rep of DECOBUILD said the increment was not to punish anyone even though it is a private entity and that no increment has been done for the past three years.

Furthermore, he said the company accessed a loan from the bank to undertake a wide face-lift of the terminal for which the company is obliged to pay interest, adding that the interest was piling up.

In an open forum, the Assembly, led by the Municipal Finance Officer said that the assembly has an MOU with DECOBUILD which in part, states that if DECOBUILD wants to take any decision, it must hold a stakeholder meeting for a consensus to be reached.

On the part of DECOBUILD, they maintained that they continue to incur cost as a result of the contracted loan and the daily operational cost at the terminal.

However, DECOBUILD admitted their oversight for not increasing the pay-as-you-load on yearly basis and the fact that they did not engage the drivers before introducing the increment.

In conclusion, both parties agreed to abide by the terms of the new agreement after a lengthy deliberation on the matter.

The MCE, on her part, approved the compromise reached by the parties to which she urged all parties to commit to part of the bargain to ensure that the amicable settlement was sustained for peace and order to prevail.

SOURCE: ISD – LaNMMA