No removal of arbitrary tax regime, no resumption – Warri Boat Owners tells Delta State Government
This is a modern day slavery – Union Chairman
Following the controversy trailing the alleged collection of excess taxation by the Delta State Ministry of Transport, the Warri Boat Owners Union have vowed to embark on an indefinite strike starting from today Monday 21st May, 2018, to press for sanity in the tax regime, thereby crippling business activities in the riverine communities.
The group stated this in a press briefing called and addressed by the Chairman of the ferry boat union, (market road unit), Comrade Samson Timbowei, on behalf of other units, in Warri Delta state.
According to Comrade Timbowei, the group has explored every avenue to make the state government see a reason to remove or adjust the arbitrary charges as well as address other sundry issues but to no avail.
“Hence, our decision to embark on this industrial action which will be total and must ground the sector until our demand is addressed by the State government,” he said.
He explained that the strike will be embarked upon by all their units which according to him includes but limited to; the Pessu unit, Market road unit, Ogbuwangwue unit and Zala unit.
In his words, “We hereby announce that no boat from these units will operate as from Monday 21st May 2018, no passenger will travel by water in these units until Governor Ifeanyi Okowa comes to our aid because this is a modern day slavery.
“If the Delta state government wants us to call off the strike, then let them completely remove the tax they are collecting from us and stop the incessant molestation by the so-called marine tax force in the river because our properties are been seized by the tax force,” he concluded.
By Abai Francis
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