Traders Evacuation: Use of Violence Is Unacceptable; Asenso Boakye to KMA Boss
The Member of Parliament for Bantama Constituency, Francis Asenso, has criticised the strategy the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly Chief Executive, Hon Richard Akwasi Ofori Agyeman, intends to use in evacuating traders using pedestrian walkways and roads.
According to him, the statement by the mayor is “unacceptable” and “reckless”.
“Violence, threats of physical abuse, and the use of fear as a governance tool are unacceptable in any form and have no place in a constitutional democracy like ours,” he said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
He argued that the remarks by the Mayor have the propensity to undermine public confidence in local authorities and expose the Assembly to potential human rights violations.
The Ranking Member on the Local Government and Rural Development Committee of Parliament, however, acknowledged the mandate of local governments to enforce bylaws and ensure public order which includes preventing trading on pedestrian walkways.
He furthered that the mandate must be carried out within the confines of the law and with full respect for human rights.
“We therefore call on the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development to intervene as a matter of urgency and impress upon the Mayor the need to retract his comments and adopt a more lawful, respectful, and humane approach to enforcement.”
On that note, the lawmaker suggested that the Assembly engage the affected traders, and work with all relevant stakeholders to identify and provide suitable alternative trading spaces.
“The goal of decongestion must not be pursued at the cost of livelihoods. Traders are not adversaries—they are citizens contributing to the local economy under often difficult conditions.”
At a presser on Monday, the KMA boss announced what he called the military-democratic style to evict recalcitrant traders at the Central Business District (CBS) who may fail to abide by the two-week ultimatum set by the Assembly.
This strategy, he said, entails whipping traders who may defy orders against trading on roads and using pedestrian walkways.
Source: opemsuo.com/Hajara Fuseini
