Dr. Kofi Mbiah
Former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Shippers Authority (GSA), Dr. Kofi Mbiah wants stakeholders to take advantage of the opportunities the new Shippers’ Bill offers rather than opposing it.
Speaking on the recent brouhaha following the passage of the bill by some stakeholder groups, Dr. Mbiah said the bill gives the GSA the mandate to undertake certain decisions to improve the industry.
“I have been away for sometime, in the period I have been connected with the industry and I am very much aware that there has been numerous complaints from the stakeholders themselves. So, it will come to me as a big surprise if we do not take the opportunity that this new bill offers,” he said.
His comments come on the back of demands by industry stakeholders including the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) for President Akufo-Addo to postpone signing the recently passed Ghana Shippers’ Authority Bill.
GUTA and other stakeholders argued that they were not consulted before the bill was passed in Parliament.
But, Dr. Mbiah explained this was a defining moment for all stakeholders in the industry to help resolve the problem faced, and called for collective agreement on the matter.
Licensing
He said complaints that the GSA in the Act wants to introduce a licensing regime for shippers was not the case, saying, “I do not think that there is a licensing regime for shippers. Shippers are expected to register, and in this era of digitalisation, the registry will be at the touch of a button, and I don’t think that, that will be another layer or impediment as far as the process is concerned.”
He said the Act would help the GSA streamline operations at the ports and create transactional value for stakeholders.
“We must move towards transaction values. The only way customers can rely on transaction values is when they are credible, when they are authentic, when they are genuine.
“You can’t have a legislation that pleases everyone. It can’t please everyone. But I think at the end of the day, we must look at the bigger picture and look at the fact that this is a defining moment for the commercial shipping industry and if we want to bring sanity into the system, then we must let this Act work,” he said.
He said the Act provides the broad framework with the details being provided in a Legislative Instrument (LI).
No Conflict of Interest
Dr. Mbiah, touching on the conflict-of-interest issue raised by some stakeholders on the Act mandating the GSA to resolve disputes in commercial dealings between shippers, indicated that the word refers to shipper organisations.
“They are not shipped so they can play the role of an arbitrator based on the information they have where there is a need for them to bring in independent persons, they can form a committee with independent persons on board. So, I don’t think that there is an issue of conflict of interest,” he explained.
A Daily Guide Report