Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has threatened that it will soon start taking action against unlicensed courier service operators such as buses and minibuses.
MACRA Communications Manager Zadziko Makhambo said this on Tuesday at Wenera Bus Depot during a sensitization campaign.
“We have noted that there is a tendency that there are buses, minibuses and motor vehicles conveying parcels from one place to another without a license.
“So, this is a restricted area where whoever does that is supposed to have a license and this is in breach of the Communications Act section 122 which says that everybody must have a license to do that business,” said Makhambo.
He therefore cautioned the general public against sending parcels with unlicensed operators saying the conduct is dangerous as one cannot get compensation once their parcels are lost.
In an interview, Swift Courier Services Blantyre Branch Manager, Paulinho Sanudi, said unlicensed courier operators are killing their business as people lose trust once they get bad experience with them.
Under Section 122 of the Communication Act, operating courier services without licence is punishable by a fine of K1 million and imprisonment for two years.
According to a statement MACRA released last month, in Malawi there are 23 licensed courier operators, including seven international commercial couriers and six domestic national commercial couriers.
By Yamikani Yapuwa – Malawi News Agency.
