The Dominican American Federation of Maritime and Air Cargo Associations (Fedacama) called on Tuesday the Dominican community abroad to refrain from sending merchandise that goes against the law so that they avoid being brought to justice and do not affect the sector that generates more than 15,000 jobs Come in United States and the Dominican Republic.
Bertha Marjaris Gil de Batistapresident of Fedacama, told Free Journal that, as a “transparent organization”, they are taking the IDs of the people who send boxes and tanks to the country so that the authorities can investigate if necessary.
“We cannot continue allowing them (Dominicans abroad) keep sending illicit things in the tanks and boxes. The authorities have found whiskey, drugs, weapons, money and bullets.” indicated the Fedacama representative.
He said that the piers he represents reach the people who need it most in the Dominican Republic.
“There are people that one must cross a river even on a donkey to be able to reach them. We reach places in the country where there are no supermarkets or anything. We are calling the dominican diaspora to check, because it is being verified manually and by scanner, that is, they will detect everything. Right now they (the authorities) do not want even batteries to be sent because that triggers the scanner,” said Gil de Batista.
He added that, as companies, they go to houses in United States and they receive the sealed packages because their licenses do not allow them to open the boxes that customers deliver. Approximately two million Dominicans reside in that country.
“In our invoice there is a sworn statement that the people who send are responsible for the boxes or tanks that they deliver to us, but in addition to that, we are asking them for identification that has photographs and that is valid in United States. It can be the passport or driver’s license of United States. Also, they ask for the identification cards of people in the Dominican Republic,” he explained.
ensured that every week Fedacama members, which are 384 companies, send 200 containers to the Dominican Republic, which contain mostly used food and clothing.
“We must take care of this service, this service is exclusive to the Dominican Republic. No other country has this service, they have to pay a lot of money because it is heavy. Not for us, for us it’s all that a box or a tank takes”, he pointed out.
He reiterated that they cannot send drugs, money and no weapons of any kind.
“The client must be sure to whom he is delivering his cargo, because some companies are borrowing, take their money and leave. There are lost containers”, pointed.
He said that the Fedacama companies are committed to developing customer-oriented campaigns so that they know what they should send and what not.
“We spend a lot of money doing this type of work, educating the client through television channels, newspapers and the different media. Clients should know that we cannot harm the work we do. It affects us and Dominican families,” he indicated.
He said that they are requesting the General Directorate of Customs to make public the people who incur in illegal acts. “We are complying with what they are asking of us and they have at hand who they can penalize.”
