The decision taken by the Ghana Ports and Habour Authority (GPHA), not to renew the operating licenses of four stevedoring companies at the Tema and Takoradi Ports and Harbour will leave at least 2000 employees jobless by the end of this month. To avert this predicament, the affected workers would on 25th May, 2010, march to the Office of the President to appeal to him for his intervention. “We are sacrificial lambs in this matter and we are appealing to President Mills to come to our aid. We suspect that somebody took this decision in order to make us jobless so that it will cut a slur on the reputation of the President”, one of the affected workers suggested to The New Crusading GUIDE over the weekend in Tema. According to the aggrieved worker, “the decision by GPHA is ill-conceived and not prudent as it does not reflect the ‘father for all’ policy of the President. President Mills should intervene before the port becomes the centre of political gymnastics”. Meanwhile, The New Crusading Guide has learnt that when news broke that the licenses of the four companies were not going to be renewed, some affected workers who have accessed loans from various banks and are in the process of paying, had their salaries for April frozen. It is feared that their May salaries would as well be frozen by the banks to defray part of their loans since they know that they are going to lose their jobs. The four aggrieved stevedoring companies are Carl Tiedemann Stevedoring (GH) Ltd, Dashwood, Odart and Fountain View Stevedoring Companies. Abdul Hakeem, spokesperson for the Workers Union, in an interview, disclosed that the workers have scheduled a meeting with the Greater Accra Regional Police Commander for tomorrow, Tuesday May 18, 2010 to deliberate on their intended procession to the Castle to present their petition to the President. Mr. Abdul Hakeem, urged the government to institute policies and programmes to support indigenous investors rather than keeping quiet over arbitrary use of power to frustrate some local investors like what has happened to the four stevedoring companies, whose fate hanged in the balance. Mr Richard Anamoo, Director of Tema Port, it would be recalled, on Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at a press conference, confirmed the decision of the Authority not to renew the licences for the affected companies. Mr Anamoo stated that the nine existing private stevedore companies which operated within GPHA had to renew their licenses annually. He explained that a qualified and selected applicant was to meet certain criteria, which included evidence of available equipment, manpower and financial resource. He further explained that the licensing of all stevedoring companies was based on the evaluation of companies that had expressed interest in writing to GPHA to carry out stevedoring operations at the ports. Mr Anamoo said the quantum of projected traffic available to be stevedored each year, was limited, thus limiting the number of companies that should be licensed each year. As a result, not all those who satisfied the minimum required qualification could be granted license by GPHA, he said. Mr Anamoo said the reduction of the number of stevedoring companies had affected the financial and labour positions of the GPHA, Atlantic Port Services limited and the Speedline Stevedore Company. "GPHA had to lay off about 1500 workers so as to download 67 per cent of its operation to private operators," he said. He said after considering over 18 additional applications, the current management of GPHA could only add four new companies to the existing five companies. Mr, Anamoo however failed to name the four new companies which have been given license to operate. Source: Gordon Asare- Bediako/The New Crusading Guide/Ghana