Dear Sir,
On Thursday, January 23, the last container load of merchandise was allowed by the Mexican authorities to be exported from Mexico into Belize.
It is not until Tuesday, February 4, that we might know when another will be allowed. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever expect something like this to happen in a great country like Mexico, and for so long. I know that the amount of exports to Belize is insignificant to their whole picture but man, this is unbelievable, when the whole world knows that exports are super important to a country’s economy.
There are millions of pesos lost in sales, extra costs to merchandise stuck at the border, plus orders put on hold because of this situation. The Belize government has also lost millions in revenue.
Surprisingly, no one seems to see the urgency in such a scenario.
This whole situation is the result of the only customs broker firm in Subteniente Lopez being suspended from operating by the authorities for some problem or the other.
Nothing is allowed to be exported without the proper documentation from a customs broker and the only one there cannot do it, so we stay in limbo. Trucks are parked, merchandise is spoiling, and if you wish to make your transport return to its destination, as the companies demand, you have to foot the bill of the “estancia,” rent a warehouse (not cheap).
Our supplier told us that if the truck goes back with the cargo, they will not send any more because of the losses. There would go a large part of my business.
Our transport company requested from the people in charge permission to cross our trailer over to transfer the cargo so that the Mexican trucker could go home, but were denied the request because supposedly, a Belizean truck can only stay 24 hours in Mexico, and the situation would take longer than that to be resolved.
Now I do not know if that is a law or just a regulation imposed by the people in charge there, but it showed a little callousness to our plight. Either the proper people in Mexico do not know about this problem, or nobody cares.
Methinks the Mexican Consul or Ambassador in Belize should take a serious look at this matter or in the words of “El Chapulin Colorado,” “Oh! Y ahora quien podra ayudarnos?”
Hope they read Amandala.
Regards,
Romel Cuello