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Transport drivers strike in protest at Kafr El Zayat Tax law and the cancellation of the trailer
We all read the news of strikes by drivers of heavy transport, which emerged from Kafr El-Zayat, State of Gharbia and followed by a number of other provinces, which confirms the existence of a big problem and a massive harm for this category. We wonder, what's the problem!!!!
When surveying the situation, we found out that in a series of random dictatorship decisions, which was not related to logic of taking into account the social dimensions and conditions of working people and experienced by millions of ordinary people, those suffering due to the lack of integration between the organs of the State every device or Ministry aims to solve part out of the problem in any way even if dropped to the consequences of other ministries and the problem faced by this category is divided into two parts between the Ministries of Transportation and The Ministry of Finance.
There is a phrase repeated by officials frequently whenever people challenge developing a law or a regulation which is " change resistance " and they mean by that any new system must be resisted by people, even if it is in their favor, but the officials forget that it is important that most of the decisions and the laws we have are ignoring the social and economic dimensions of people and that we can not apply the law or system imported from another country which has a stronger and higher level educational and cultural infrastructure without developing the infrastructure and level of education and even cultural change in line with.
Unfortunately, the official aims to solve the problem which comes up and places the laws that prevent recurrences and the imposition of fines on the violator without finding alternatives to the citizen who finds himself caught between the offense or to change the matter which costs him what he can not stand and this is what happened to the problem of transport drivers which led them to organize a general strike and to prevent all the other cars that did not participate in the strike from running on the road leading to the crisis in the transportation and a freeze in the course of life from since Friday 10th Dec 2010 and they concentrated in their demands on:
- Canceling or modifying the tax code.
- Canceling the deletion law of the trailer or to provide alternative solutions.
- Establishment of a school for training drivers and facilitating access to the license, which requires 6 years to get them, which led some to drive without a license with the gravity of the view of the requirements driving heavy transport of the specifications in the driver and the ability to control, and we discuss every each point individually below:
Regarding canceling or modifying the tax law:
The problem is concluded that the Ministry's claim to the owners of transport vehicles load of 5 tons or more substantial amounts in taxes annually up to ten times the previous scheduled tax or more and also demanding them to pay this topic value retroactively for five years. In which logic can someone pay ten times of what he used to pay multiplied by five? Which rule that governs this terrible increase that can cause the bankruptcy of many. It is assumed that the taxes go to public services and road construction and modernization of infrastructure. Where is the massive improvement imposed by the ministry that was multiplied compared by this terrible increase? Possibly there is an intention to increase services, but must people pay their share previously? God knows!!!
Since the State of Gharbia has the largest number of transport vehicles due to the presence of Kafr El-Zayat ,the industrial area, with a large number of factories and companies, the issue was displayed on television. There was a question asked to the Governor of Gharbia in the matter and he said that he will try to consult the matter with the Minister of Finance to amend the resolution or something of like that. And according to this, the owners of cars that the tax was applied on them in Kafr El-Zayat and the surrounding villages made a general strike and they went out to the highway and prevented any transport vehicles or taxi on the road from passing .This led to a major problem in the transportation and the disruption of people's interests so that a patient from the village of Daqran one of the villages of Kafr El-Zayat restrict was in critical condition and did not find any car to take him to the hospital and his family was forced to transport him to the hospital on the tractor, despite of his health.
And Central Security cars spread to navigate the main roads and also the roads to villages in order to prevent any problems that could happen or any gatherings that aim to prevent the functioning of cars. So, how long shall we submit under the decisions that are inconsistent with our reality and do not put people's and the simple man's needs and circumstances into consideration in decisions taking, the decisions which count the simple citizen as a working tool; only receive the laws without considering that the aim of the invention of the law is to give the poor their right not to be a sword over their necks and pockets.
As for the second part of the problem which is abolishing the trailer:
Many accidents resulted on the agricultural and ring roads and other trailers because of the trailers from a side and the load increase on the other which resulted:
- A lot of ugly accidents that ended the lives of many people.
- Exhausting for the roads network faster than their supposed expiry dates.
Of course, there is no discussion in those facts. It is absolutely correct and the response of the ministry of transport as a solution to remove the destructive effects of two resolutions:
- Impose a fine of 23 EGP per offending ton.
- The application of the decision to cancel the trailer once and converted to trailers, but given a time limit for car owners to implement that it was not an immediate implementation.
For the first resolution, there was no solution provided and the over load did not stop because it has to be paid to taxes, fees and fines forcing the driver to increase the load to compensate the loss and get a living and pay the premium price of the car and the trailer.
For the second resolution, a simple calculation is to be done. How can 70.000 trailer or 34.390 according to the words of Mr. Kamal Mongi ,the advisor of the Minister of Transportation, be converted to tractors and who bears the cost of that while the drivers need to pay the installments of their cars don’t forget that they are mortgaged with the bank keeping ownership of the cars knowing that the price of the truck is 200.000 EGP. The ministry has offered to pay the value of 25.000 EGP. How can people pay the amounts of money that are required?
The implementation of the law is supposed to be during the coming period, which could lead to bankruptcy for many people.
The strange thing is that an advisor of the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Kamal Mongi said in an interview on Monday with Moataz El-Demerdash at El-Mehwar channel that the use of trailers outside Egypt is different and the requirements are different and safer and he reported that there are differences between our trailers and counterparts and those abroad. These differences are technical and behavioral.
Technical differences:
- Contacting the truck is completely not safe unlike its counterparts in other countries.
- The form of the load is fixed (container) or linoleum cover.
- El Afsha or air hanging suspension system abroad, any pregnancy increase hit, forcing the driver to stand aside while we have slider papers here.
The behavioral differences can be summarized in:
- The lack of commitment of the drivers to the legal speeds.
- Not abiding by the rules of the road.
- Non-compliance with of the imposed cargo.
These things do not occur in other countries. The strange thing is that the words of the Minister's advisor gave solutions of many non-cancellation of the trailer are solutions to convert the trailer to a SAFE trailer like other countries do either to convert it to (CONTAINER) or in any way to guarantee the stability of the form of load, size and also change the suspension or El Afsha if this is available from the technical point. By this way, we reach to a solution point in between by changing the way of dripping to a safe one as long as there is one possible and that we have reached a compromise intended taking into account the conditions of the people and the road network we need to maintain both daunting and many improvements must not lose sight of its role in the rate of road accidents where they spent as they are not subject to many of the technical requirements necessary to ensure ease of traffic and the necessary security on the road
massive solutions do not fit our hard working society that does not have the full value of the demolition and new construction on a correct basis unless the government kindly provides genuine support for such an operation away from the code numbers that do not help.
This is regarding the Ministry of Transportation. Regarding the other part concerning The Ministry of Finance, we do not have anything to say except calling Mr. PHD. Minister of Finance to have mercy and compassion for simple people who seek only to achieve a decent life, or at least to save their and their children's enough living and having a decent life. In these simple means, (food, clothing, education and the ability to prepare their daughters and sons for marriage. Their joy is a simple legitimate one. They do not know the way to Marina and Porto Sokhna does not represent anything for them except an advertisement within while watching a T.V show with their families after a long struggling day. The amounts that have been imposed on these people might not be so much in your view, but for them it is a disaster and there is no person on earth that can legitimate paying ten doubles of what was agreed on and also to be paid with retrospective effect for five years !!!!!!!!!!!
I say only, "Have mercy for those are on earth, then God with have mercy on you".
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