The Democratic Alliance in Limpopo is concerned by what seems an apparent go slow at the Beitbridge border post. This has resulted in haulage trucks being stranded for days awaiting customs clearance. see video and photos here, here, here and here.
The slow processing at the Beitbridge border post by SARS customs officials has seen hundreds of trucks have to park on the side of the road and along the road to the Beitbridge border.
The DA in Limpopo has received complaints about the large haulage trucks blocking off other users of the road and the slow rate at which the trucks are being cleared, which can be up to 4 hours. There are also complaints about there not being an immigration officer at the commercial section for departures during certain periods of the day.
It is unacceptable that these trucks and their goods are made to queue for 3-5 days in sweltering heat of about 40 degrees celsius at the border post with no access to basic sanitation facilities. These trucks also cause a disruption to other traffic and road users.
This slow processing and clearing of haulage trucks cannot continue and shows the diminishing capacity to effectively deal with the large volume of trucks going through the border post. This points to a need to improve their systems and staffing to support the large quantity of trucks.
The DA believes a significant amount of the country’s trade is done through the Beitbridge border post and calls on Premier Mathabatha to engage with the relevant counterparts in national government to ensure that such custom delays that could affect trade are resolved as a matter of urgency.