|
Speedboat owners thank Kenya Govt
2005-09-30 10:39:35
By Guardian Reporter
Lake Fast Ferries, operators of two speedboats that will soon start service in Lake Victoria have thanked the Kenyan government for permitting them to use its roads to transport the boats from Mombasa to Kisumu in their original weight, width and length.
Speaking to The Guardian in Dar es Salaam yesterday, Azim Dewji, the co-ordinator of the firm, said after verification of the boats’ measurements the Kenyan Government authorities found out that there was no way they could destroy their roads, bridges or interfere with the supply of electricity.
Dewji conveyed his firm’s thanks to the Kenyan government before departing to Mwanza to witness the arrival of the two boats from Kisumu port dry-dock where they had been undergoing refurbishments after they had been transported from Mombasa three weeks ago.
The Mwanza Regional Commissioner, Daniel Njoolay, will receive the boats at a short reception to be held at Mwanza port this afternoon.
The arrival of the boats at the lakeside port will complete their fourteen-month journey from Dar es Salaam.
Dewji said the arrival of the boats in Mwanza also marks the end of a long period of anxiety on the part of the investors and opens a new chapter in solving transport problems for the residents of the Lake Zone.
Dewji explained: ’’This is the price of patience. Had we not been patient, the project would have been withdrawn and that would be a loss to the company and an injustice to the residents of Mwanza, Shinyanga, Mara and Kagera regions who badly needs this transport service.’’
He said that the arrival of the boats in Mwanza is also a landmark in the spirit of East African Cooperation, as they had to be transported by road through neighbouring Kenya from Mombasa to Kisumu after the owners failed to get a permit to transport them through Tanzanian roads.
The boats were earlier scheduled to be transported by road from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza in August last year.
However, the trip could not take off after the Ministry of Works refused to issue the transporters, Truck Parts Ltd a permit allegedly because the measurements of the boats did not comply with the country’s roads specifications.
After a protracted debate between the Ministry and the transporters, the latter decided to transport the boats through Kenyan roads. The Kenyan government issued them with the permit last month.
|
