- Port row deepens as strike holds and traders hit back at Awingobit
Ghana’s widening dispute over the Publican AI customs valuation system escalated on Tuesday after the Joint Business Forum insisted that the ongoing strike by freight forwarders and clearing agents remains fully in force, even as it issued a sharp rebuttal to comments by Asaki Awingobit defending the system.
In a statement dated April 14, 2026, the coalition, which includes GUTA, FFAG, ACHAG, CUBAG, GIFF, FABAG, TAAG and other trade and forwarding groups said operations at the ports remain suspended, with members having ceased the payment of duties and laid down their tools as earlier directed. The group said that people should disregard any suggestion that the strike had been called off or suspended.
The clarification followed a meeting with the Ghana Shippers Authority at the instance of Prof. Gyampo, where the coalition said it was asked, on behalf of the transport and finance ministries, to suspend the action pending an emergency meeting on Thursday, April 16. But the Forum said it agreed only to pause further line-up actions on its roadmap out of respect for the intervention, not to withdraw the current strike.
At the same time, the coalition moved to isolate Asaki Awingobit, whose recent statement backing Publican AI and criticising opponents of the system has triggered fresh anger within the port and trading community. In a separate rejoinder circulated Tuesday, the coalition said it does not seek to silence dissenting views, but argued that such dissent must be grounded in stronger evidence and real port experience rather than what it described as attempts to dismiss the daily operational problems faced by traders, importers and clearing agents.
The group was especially blunt in its assessment of Awingobit’s standing, arguing that he does not represent Ghana’s wider trading community and lacks the practical trade experience required to speak authoritatively on the disruptions caused by the system. It also accused him of a conflict of interest, pointing to his role on a government export board linked to the same administration driving implementation of Publican AI.
For the striking coalition, the issue remains practical rather than ideological. It said traders continue to face unpredictable and excessively high duty assessments, prolonged cargo clearance delays, mounting demurrage and rent charges, and the near absence of an effective dispute-resolution system for valuation disagreements. Those failures, the group argued, have created an unsustainable business environment and justify continued industrial action.
The language matters because it shows the dispute is no longer limited to complaints about software design or valuation methodology. It has become a broader legitimacy battle over who truly speaks for the trading community at a time when port disruption is feeding directly into business costs and supply-chain anxiety.
The coalition said it remains open to dialogue at Thursday’s emergency meeting but made clear that until concrete resolutions are reached, the withdrawal of services by freight forwarders and clearing agents will continue. That leaves the government facing a narrowing window to contain a dispute that is rapidly hardening into a larger confrontation over trade facilitation, revenue enforcement, and trust at the ports.
