By Harison Kikeke/ The Plu’s Special Correspondent
Cargo operations at all port facilities in Kenya are expected to be paralyzed after more than 1000 customs agents declared an indefinite strike on Monday Morning.
According to the agents, who are members of KIFWA (Kenya International Freight and Warehousing Association), their protest is against the absence of 2017 Customs license which they say have not been issued to them by Kenya Revenue Authority.
“They have not given us our 2017 customs license” Said their leader William Ojonyo “They want us to collect taxes without license. We are daring them to block our passwords, because we don’t need passwords without license”
The agents have taken issue with the way the Kenya Revenue Authority is handling the standoff, accusing the authority of high headedness and trying to oversee the delisting of local agents at the expense of foreign multinationals.
“We have reliable information that the top management at KRA are pushing for a bigoted agenda to deregister more than 1000 homegrown clearing agents” said Ojonyo “If this is allowed to happen then, the revenue authority is sanctioning a process that will result loss of employment opportunities for thousands of Kenyans”
Agents said, every effort to seek redress and address from KRA has since hit a dead end thus forcing them to take what they called “the last stroke “
“We have been following this issue for months now without any resolve. We would not clear any cargo if no measure is taken to improve the standoff. That means giving us our license without any condition” Ojonyo said
On Tuesday, the agents are planning to petition the Kenyan Parliament and hold vigil outside Times Towers to pressure KRA to issue the license, until then they vowed not to pay taxes or evacuate cargoes at all ports.
