Traders express strong opposition to planned project

Traders at the Kejetia lorry terminal, for the second time in two weeks, hit the streets to express fierce opposition to the planned Kumasi Central Market Redevelopment Project.

The project, awarded to Brazilian Contractors, would involve the demolition of stores at the terminal, the economic heartbeat of the city, to make way for the construction of 10,000 new ones.

There is, however, anxiety among the traders with many of them skeptical and distrustful of the city authorities promise to give the first option of allocation to those who are now operating at the terminal.

Their suspicion is that these would go to friends and cronies by pricing them beyond their reach.

The traders want firm guarantees and more transparency by the authorities and this was evidenced from the placards they carried, with messages like “What is our fate after the project” and “We want development in freedom”.

Some of the protesters complained that no proper arrangements had been made by the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) to relocate them.

They said they found things very confusing and did not believe what they were being told.

The peaceful demonstration ended with the presentation of a petition by the Public Relations Officer of the Traders Association, Mr. Andrews Kwofie to the Metropolitan Coordinating Director, Mr. Michael Ataogye.

Mr. Ataogye asked for calm and said the assembly would sit down with the traders and all stakeholders to comprehensively deliberate and resolve every single contentious issue for smooth implementation of the project.