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Traders working along pavements in Kumasi’s central business district have been issued a two-week ultimatum by the city’s mayor to leave the area immediately or face penalties, including being beaten.
Mr. Richard Ofori Agyemang Boadi warned the vendors that the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) will begin a two-week decongestion exercise on Wednesday, April 16, 2024, to expel any vendors who set up shop on sidewalks and by the sides of the roadways.
The KMA has issued a warning that anyone caught selling on the streets will face harsh consequences.
The KMA claims that typical measures to remove sellers from the pavements, such seizing their items and making arrests, have not been successful since traders keep coming back.
The mayor stated that such indiscipline has been a major factor in the city’s congestion and needs to be addressed.
As a disincentive to others, the new mayor has threatened to hit out at vendors who still set up shop on the sidewalks.
Speaking at a press conference in Kumasi on Monday, April 14, Mr. Boadi said his strategy, which he believes would be successful in keeping vendors off the pavements, blends democratic values with military-style enforcement.
“I have my own military-democratic style which I will be implementing. When we say leave the space, and you don’t leave the space and I get there, and you’re not there and my boys are with me, there and there we will beat you.
“In the middle of Adum, if I’m alone, you will be lucky, but if I’m with my ten boys, in their pick-up with their whips, trust me, we will beat you. If you don’t want to experience that kind of situation, do what is right and lawful.
“This is Otumfoo’s city, this is the garden city of West Africa, and we have to preserve it. If you want the job to be difficult for me, I will let your body feel the difficulty you are giving to me,” he advised.
Source: Ghanatodayonline.com
