Assin Fosu residents cry over deplorable town roads

Residents of Assin Fosu in the Assin Central Municipality of the Central Region, have called on the Government to as a matter of urgency tar the town's roads to befit its status as the capital of the Municipality.

The town rated as the 65th most populous settlement in Ghana, with an estimated population of over 20,541 is the fifth fastest growing metropolis in the Region and has grown rapidly to become the commercial food basket of the three political districts namely the Assin North, Central and South.

Notwithstanding all these economic and social prospects, the roads in the Municipality had not received any major rehabilitation works and are ridden with multiples of wide portholes competing with erosion on the sides of the roads.

The situation has created intense vehicular traffic jams across the metropolis as vehicular and human traffic had slowed down economic activities.

Large amounts of fumes from exhausts mixed with heavy dust filled the air Thursday morning when the Ghana News Agency visited the town compelling many people to cover their faces to avoid inhaling the poisonous fumes.

The unmotorable roads include the Dompim -Immigration road, Odumasi, Mempease-Nsuakyi, Atonsu-St. Andrews, Habitat Dominase among other antennary roads.

A resident who sells beverages and pastries along the Dompim-Junction-Immigration -Dompim road told the GNA that sales had reduced significantly due to the dusty nature of the road.

At Adiembra station, a chemical seller, who gave his name as Joseph said the dust emanating from the road had added to their cost of maintaining the facility as they had to buy more detergents and resort to hourly cleaning to preserve and maintain the quality of medicines.

Mr Romeo Mintah, a Landlord, at Odumasi also complained about thick dust cover in the area as he complained of throat and chest pains.

To help address the road challenges, Mr Nicholas Fiifi Baako, Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), on Monday commenced a massive decongestion exercise to ride the streets of traders and all unauthorized structures to pave way for roads upgrading.