The bus terminal is one of the many of such in the Ashanti Region
The new Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) Chief Executive, Osei Assibey Antwi, has averted bloodbath at the Sofoline transport terminal as drivers had planned to attack the Assembly’s engineers, who were to start work on an ultra-modern bus terminal on Monday.
Executives of the Sofoline branch of Ghana Private Roads Transport Union (GPRTU) led by its Chairman, Julius Caesar, is said to have sent a notice on Sunday to the KMA, warning that any attempt to take over the terminal without reaching an agreement will be forcefully resisted.
Upon hearing the threat from the drivers, the KMA boss directed an immediate halt to the project.
Reiterating their threat to Onua FM on Yen Nsempa on Monday, chairman Caesar explained that his branch had sunk huge sums of money in constructing the terminal. He therefore warned that any attempt by the city authorities to take over the site without reaching an agreement with them, will result in a bloodbath.
Chairman Julius Caesar noted that they had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the previous Kumasi mayor on the same issue and was surprised to have received a notice that KMA officials will be at the station on Monday, April 10 to carry out demolition, which will pave way for the project.
He mentioned that in excess of GH¢3.8 billion has been invested in the project and “any force from the KMA will result not only in violence but also huge judgment debt, because we have every document”.
But in a quick response, the new KMA boss, Osei Assibey Antwi, told Onua FM that he has sent a team to the terminal to stop the city engineers from carrying out the demolition until further notice.
“I want to sit with them so that we find a common ground in dealing with this issue. It will benefit all parties”.
The KMA boss has also appealed to the chairman and his executives to desist from further commenting on the issue in the media as he prepares to meet them in order to reach a consesus.
