TPA may retain Ticts staff following expiry of contract

Dar es Salaam.  The Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) is planning to retain employees of Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (Ticts).

The move comes after a five-year contract signed on July 6, 2017 between TPA and Ticts expired on September 30, this year, despite calls for the renewal of the contract.

Ticts served the Port of Dar es Salaam for 22 years since 2000 when it signed the contract for the first time to provide services for container and cargo handling, which will now be carried out by TPA itself.

A source from within the authority said the plan of retaining the workers is already underway, expressing that “we have no reason of finding other workers.”

 “We are keeping the over 600 Ticts personnel and will pay them the same as previously.  We don’t want them to have problems, and we also don’t want to have to deal with the burden of replacing them,” said one of the TPA’s senior officials.

The source further said: “From January 1, next year, Ticts will no longer be with us, although Ticts continues to ask the TPA management to continue providing services, but that is not possible because it has failed to meet the criteria or achieve the goals wanted by the TPA.”

When asked about the matter, the TPA Director General, Mr Plasduce Mbossa, responded that for now he was not in a position to talk about it. “If it’s true or false, let’s wait. Let’s be patient,” said Mr Mbossa.

When asked on what exactly made them fail to agree with Ticts, Mr Mbossa responded that he should be sought another time as he did not have direct answers at present.

However, The Citizen has impeccable information that Ticts has been served with a letter about TPA’s intention of not extending the contract and that TPA is ready to perform the duties that were being carried out by the former.

However, a Ticts official, who did not want to be mentioned while talking to The Citizen yesterday, said they are yet to receive official information about the TPA’s intention.

However, the official said the Ticts management has warned its workers not to talk to the press until when the official information is given.

“We will have something to say after being given official information, what next? We will let you know, but now we have nothing to tell you,” said the official.

 Last month, The Citizen spoke to the Permanent Secretary of the ministry of Works and Transport (responsible for transport), Mr Gabriel Migire, about TPA’s intention of partying ways with Ticts, whereby he said what is required is the provision of better services within the port.

“Until TPA has reached that decision, I think it has taken that precaution and you will continue to see,” he said when asked about TPA partying ways with the company.