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Customers of a shipping courier company protest outside the Ministry of Trade, Nicholas Towers, Port of Spain, on November 12. - Photo by Lincoln HolderFRUSTRATED customers of shipping company Trinbago Express have called on Trade Minister Satyakama Maharaj to intervene and assist with getting their cargo, which has been held at the Port of Port of Spain for several months, cleared.
The customers protested outside the Ministry of Trade, Investment and Tourism’s headquarters at Nicholas Towers in Port of Spain on November 12 in an attempt to get the government to intervene in the saga.
Simultaneous demonstrations were held in Tobago and at the New York Attorney General’s Office.
Armed with placards, the customers chanted “no cargo, no peace.”
Umar Abdullah, leader of the First Wave Movement, was among the demonstrators. He said citizens both at home and in the diaspora have been in anguish for months hoping that their parcels, which included personal items, business goods and gifts, would be distributed.
Abdullah urged the minister to help the beleaguered customers.
“The Ministry of Trade cannot claim ignorance; it cannot claim impotence. It has the power to investigate. It has the authority to intervene and it has a duty to act. We say to the minister and every official inside of this building – use your power.
“Let this protest be a warning and a promise. We will not be ignored. We will not be dismissed. We will not be silenced. We are organised. We are unified.”
Also among the protesters in Port of Spain was dual citizen Claude Beerom who was returning home from the US with important items, including his medication.
He said he was hoping to enjoy his retirement in Trinidad, but it has been a nightmare.
Beerom said workers from Trinbago Express Shipping Inc, the US arm of the company, visited his home in Brooklyn, New York, and collected a barrel of items in June and up to now he has not received his items.
He said calls and visits to the company resulted in no solution.
“I'm a citizen of the United States of America. I'm a returning resident. And I'm still waiting on my things. I go out every four or five months and do all my shopping. I buy my things and I send them to Trinidad,” he said.
“I'm a vegetarian, a diabetic and a heart patient. And I ship everything I want because I know it's expensive in Trinidad.”
For months, customers of the embattled shipper have been demanding answers from the company.
Some have even confronted officials at the New York subsidiary demanding answers.
The local arm, Trinbago Express T&T Ltd, has since severed ties with the US operations and closed its office in Port of Spain.
In a statement posted on its website, Trinbago Express T&T Managing Director Lidmer Murray explained both companies are operated independently and the local company “has no control or authority over financial transactions, overseas shipping payments or business practices of Trinbago Express Shipping Inc.”
Murray said Trinbago Express T&T had no choice but to close its doors since it was unable to continue operating “without cargo movement or income.”
“The role of the local company has always been the clearing and delivery of consignments to customers once they arrive and are released by the shipping line to the port,” Murray said.
“Unfortunately, without fulfilment of payment being made by Trinbago Express Shipping Inc, we are unable to access or un-stuff these containers. Despite this, Trinbago Express T&T Ltd has spent months trying to get answers, offering assistance, finding solutions even providing alternative shipping options to allow for continuity of the operation, all in an effort to help customers receive their goods.”
Murray called on Trinbago Express Shipping Inc to comply with its financial responsibilities and obligation to customers.
Attempts by Newsday to reach both the trade minister and parliamentary secretary Dr Colin Neil Gosine for comment were unsuccessful.
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