Truckers put planned blockade on hold

Truckers have set aside their
planned blockade of the Port of
Durban for over three weeks.
The plan to completely shut
down the port was in protest
at the terminal operator’s
inefficiencies which had left
many container road hauliers
on the brink of bankruptcy.
The issue started on
September 15 when a letter
from a truckers’ collective
– known as the Concerned
Harbour Transporters'
Association (CHTA) – sent
a letter to, among others,
Siyabonga Gama, CEO
Transnet, Mlamuli Buthelezi,
Transnet’s COO, and Karl
Socikwa, CE of Transnet Port
Terminals (TPT).
And the blockade threat in
this letter read: “We kindly
request a meeting with you
gentlemen in your capacity
as group chief executive of
Transnet and chief operating
officer of Transnet within
seven days. Due to the severity
of the situation, should no
resolution be reached on the
improvement of the current
situation we, the trucking
community, will have no
option but to embark on a
Peaceful Protest Action (the
blockade).
“We would like to
discuss various issues, also
highlighting the inhumane
treatment of the truck
drivers by TPT through their
inefficiencies. You have truck
drivers sitting in the trucks
for up to +30 hrs. And, once
loaded, they must travel on
national roads. This poses a
major safety risk and concern
to common road users.”
This emergency meeting
was held, and the truckers
requested that TPT should
institute a 90-minute
turnaround timing – which
senior management of the
terminals had agreed two
years ago was quite feasible
– and any time this was
exceeded, TPT should pay the
truckers compensation.
Added to that, the CHTA
wanted new technical
management to overcome the
frequent terminal equipment
breakdowns – which TPT
insisted was a major reason
behind the delays.
They also demanded that
all the punitive charges should
be dropped. “It’s a ridiculous
situation where our trucks can
be delayed for long periods
and, if TPT’s free storage
period is therefore exceeded,
we have to then pay them
excessive storage fees,” said
Ashley Govender, secretary of
the CHTA. “We are literally
having to pay TPT for their
own inefficiencies.”
But, after a week of
consideration, FTW was
told that TPT had f latly
refused to pay compensation
or were still examining the
punitive charge issue. Also,
at the final meeting on
September 30, the CHTA
– having apparently run
out of its aggressive steam
– agreed that a task team
would be formed from all
the parties involved, which
would oversee the progress
towards achieving the other
aims.
While Govender said that
the blockade threat still
“lurked on the horizon”,
FTW gained the impression
that, once again, Transnet’s
stalling strategy had
effectively put the kibosh on
this “peaceful protest”.
And we ourselves have
also been effectively stalled.
FTW was told that an
October 3 request to TPT
for its comments on the
matter had been forwarded
to Transnet head office for
reply. But, so far, nix.