Enraged Hawkers demonstrate against TMA

Ashaiman, Sept. 06, GNA - Enraged traders and hawkers who were being evicted from the streets in Ashaiman, on Thursday nearly prevented the Tema Municipal Assembly's (TMA) Chief Executive Officer and other officials from using the Ashaiman market road. It took the intervention of some police personnel to calm the situation as the street hawkers, wearing red bands and singing war songs, swarmed around the vehicle of Mr David Quaye Annang, TMA Chief Executive

Mr. Annang, together with Mr. Maxwell Kofi Jumah, Deputy Minister of Local Government, Environment and Rural Development, and some TMA officials, were on their way to the Ashaiman market to assess the market situation. Addressing the angered hawkers after the situation had been brought under control, Mr. Annang assured them of re-locating to a new market to be constructed on the outskirts of the old market. He said plans were far advanced for the construction of a new market for Ashaiman as the current one was too small for the densely populated town.

Mr. Annang invited the leadership of the hawkers and the Ashaiman Ghana Private Road Transport Union to a stakeholders' meeting on Tuesday, saying; "we need to dialogue to get the right solution to this problem".

The Deputy Local Government Minister suggested that for Ashaiman to have sufficient funds for its projects, it should have its own District Assembly and Common Fund. Mr Jumah noted that, the TMA's Common Fund was not enough to cater for all the projects in the Tema Municipality, of which Ashaiman had the largest population.

He said even though employment was a priority for the government, it was not right for the hawkers to turn the streets into market places. Mr. Jumah, therefore, urged them to be law abiding and keep off the streets, as selling on the streets, created a lot of inconveniences to other road users.

When the officials toured the market, Madam Leticia Korkor Agogo, Ashaiman Market Queen, threatened that the market women would also move onto the streets if the hawkers were not cleared off. She explained that the activities of the hawkers affected them negatively, as buyers purchased from the streets instead of the market. She added that, offloading their wares, was sometimes a problem, because the hawkers had taken over the streets and roads. 06 Sept. 07