Africa-Press – Angola. The installation of a goods scanner system along the land border of Luvo, in the municipality of Mbanza Kongo, was defended by the provincial governor of Zaire, with a view to putting an end to tax evasion and human trafficking.
According to Adriano Mendes de Carvalho, who was speaking to journalists at the end of a visit to the Luvo border post, 60 kilometers from the city of Mbanza Kongo, he said that the installation of the Scanner system facilitates the control of goods and speeds up the dispatch of trucks. .
He advanced that the Scanner installation is not only intended to deal with situations related to the control of goods, but also of fuel smuggling that is intended to end at the provincial level, which causes damage to the national economy.
According to the governor of Zaire, the Scanner to be installed along the Luvo border is not only intended to deal with situations related to the control of goods and combating fuel smuggling, but also to put an end to the phenomenon of trafficking in human beings.
As for the issue of installing tolls, Adriano Mendes de Carvalho said that, in no part of the world, a border like Luvo, through which more than 200 trucks travel daily, heading to the DRC, would be without that important electronic scale. to raise revenue for the country.
Logistics Platforms
Regarding the process of the logistical platforms, the governor said that their construction is soon, the objective of which is to give greater control and organization of goods, as well as guaranteeing a better appearance at the Luvo border post. To this end, Adriano Mendes de Carvalho will invite some entities from the corresponding ministerial departments to discuss the issue.
Truckers’ Odyssey
The truck drivers who move the economy, through goods on national roads towards the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), complain about the poor state of the main roads and the bureaucracy they face on the Luvo border, and therefore defend the dynamization of the process border transition.
For truck driver Lino Jamba João, 35, who has been traveling on the country’s roads for 10 years, points out the poor condition of the Nzeto-Mbanza Kongo-Luvo section, with more than 290 kilometers, as the main difficulty in transporting goods to the border. .
“I’m coming from the province of Cunene with the reindeer potato that came from the Republic of Namibia and we are going to Kinshasa, capital of the DRC. From Cunene to here on the border of Luvo, it took us six days, because of the road that is very bad. on Saturday 1st, around 2 pm. There are many potholes, from Nzeto to here on the Luvo border, the road is terrible, it has even caused many accidents. For example, as we were coming, two trucks crashed, because of When it rains, the earth slides. Only from Mbanza Kongo to Luvo, there is a section that only has dirt. When it rains, the truck doesn’t go up anymore”, he stressed.
According to Lino Jamba João, on the Cu-nene-Luanda section there is a reasonable circulation, with the exception of the Benguela area, where there are 50 kilometers with some problems: “From Cu-nene to Luanda, we only found a section of 50 kilometers in Benguela with potholes, specifically from Katengue to Chongoroi. But from Lubango to Chongoroi the road is more or less. Now from Nzeto to Luvo it is really bad, the section requires urgent rehabilitation”.
Due to the delay in crossing the Luvo border, associated with the six-day journey, the truck driver fears that the reindeer potato will spoil. He attributes the delay to the official dispatcher who does not work on weekends, as well as at the Congolese border.
“I arrived here around 2 pm. Until Sunday, 2, they are not saying anything. This is a product that spoils. Right now, we are waiting to see if we can get through (Monday, 3). it has nothing to do with AGT, it has to do only with the dispatcher”, he stressed.
As for the action of the border authorities of the DRC, according to Lino Jamba João, to enter that neighboring country, the process is considered quite bureaucratic, as they charge for everything or nothing.
“The crossing from the DRC side is so bureaucratic. For example, they come here to our land and they don’t pay anything, but we are obliged to pay 50 dollars for the Covid-19 test. Covid-19, but once there, we are forced to repeat the test and they charge 50 dollars per person”, he revealed.
Lino João added that, in addition to the amounts charged at the border of Lufu (Luvo) on the DRC side, Angolans face several controls along Congolese roads, a situation that finds a slight opening, only at night.
“Angolans from here on the Lufu border (DRC) only walk at night, because there are many controls. If we walk during the day, we are forced to pay tolls and bear the controls. But at night it is more or less, because everything has been resolved on the basis of a conversation”, he concluded.
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