A disagreement over unauthorised trading on a footbridge at Lapaz turned confrontational after a woman allegedly threatened to beat a man who challenged her presence at the pedestrian facility.

The incident was captured by a Facebook user, Joe Parker, who said the confrontation occurred on the morning of his post after he asked the woman to stop selling on the footbridge.

According to Parker, the woman reacted aggressively to his request and questioned his authority to prevent her from trading at the location.

He said she argued that a police officer had previously passed by and bought tea from her, suggesting that he had no right to challenge her activities when the officer had not done so.

"She was so aggressive and claimed even a policeman had passed by and bought her tea, so what right do I have to stop her from selling on the footbridge when the policeman didn’t," Parker recounted.

He further alleged that the woman threatened to beat him during the exchange.

The situation reportedly ended after another pedestrian intervened, prompting the woman to move away from the footbridge.

Parker also explained that part of the audio accompanying his account was interrupted because he was attempting to contact the Assembly Member responsible for the area.

In his post, he appealed to the Okaikwei North Municipal Assembly, the Ghana Police Service and the Department of Urban Roads to pay attention to the situation.

The incident has drawn attention to concerns about the use of pedestrian footbridges for commercial activities and the potential confrontations that can arise when traders are challenged to vacate such spaces.

Footbridges are designed primarily to provide pedestrians with safe passage across busy roads, reducing the need for people to cross through moving traffic. Their use for vending can obstruct movement and undermine their intended purpose.

Under Ghana's road and local governance framework, assemblies have responsibilities relating to public spaces, sanitation and the regulation of activities within their jurisdictions, while road authorities are responsible for the management of road infrastructure.

EA