Haulage drivers operating on the Paga-Burkina-Faso road on Wednesday, June 2, clashed with personal of the Customs unit of the Ghana Revenue Authority at the Paga border over new parking fees at the border.
The drivers, numbering over a hundred prevented the Customs officials from collecting the fee from drivers who were leaving the lorry park, which resulted in a misunderstanding between the two groups.
Media personnel that were invited by the drivers to report their concerns, also had some challenges with the Custom officers, resulting in the arrest of a TV Correspondent, Mohammed Rabiu Tanko.
His phone, which he was filming with, was seized and he was dragged from the scene to the Customs office. The Customs officials fired warning shots when they realized the crowd was becoming big.
The drivers are asking the Paga border officials to charge the same amount being charged at other borders. According to the drivers, the officials at the border post charge GHc50.00 for packing between 0-4hours and 4hours – 8hours attracts GHc70.00.
The drivers say if these fees are maintained, they will end up spending all their money at the border and may land them in trouble. They said all other borders charge a flat rate of GHc10.00 for packing, unlike the Paga border which charges them on an hourly basis.
Source: A1Radioonline.com:101.Mhz
