THE Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) yesterday pledged to waive storage fees on goods imported by tenants of a building that collapsed in Kariakoo here a week ago, killing 20 people and damaging goods worth millions of shillings.

Abed Gallus, the TPA acting director, announced the move at a city press conference over the weekend focused on port concerns on the business side of those affected by the Kariakoo disaster.

He said legitimate claimants should provide requisite details to their clearance agents, who will in turn submit the details to TPA, to benefit from the decision to waive charges on goods of the legitimate claimants.

This has been done many times in the past, he said, explaining that such waivers are not exclusive to TPA as other public institutions would usually do the same.

“Waiving storage fee on goods in our custody on circumstances of this nature is routine policy, aligned with Tanzania’s culture of showing solidarity with victims of understandable disasters. 

“Legitimate claimants should quickly report their cases to the agents, who will sort out their problems with us,” he emphasized.

The four-storey building collapsed on a Saturday killing 20 people while dozens escaped death virtually by a miracle, upon which the government appointed a 19 man team of experts to investigate the reasons for the fateful accident, tainting the image of Kariakoo as a metropolitan business centre in the city of Dar es Salaam.

At midweek President Samia Hassan toured the site of the accident and addressed a public meeting at the nearby Mnazi Mmoja grounds, then proceeded to visit accident victims admitted at the Muhimbili National Hospital.