To ensure that the new murals at the Ako Adjei Interchange is protected, citizens have called on city authorities to mete out sanctions to persons who are caught defacing its walls with posters and advertisements.
The walls of the Ako Adjei Interchange formerly the Sankara Roundabout has received a major facelift under the ‘Accra for All’ beautification project that seeks to transform some parts of the city with vibrant murals that celebrate the culture and tradition of the Ga community.
Persons who drive through the Interchange will no longer see the cluster of posters belonging to churches, political candidates, banners among various advertisements that were previously scattered on the walls of the interchange.
Despite the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA)’s Premises Maintenance By-Law of 1995 section 76 of the Local Government Act, 1993 (act 465) which bans persons from defacing public facilities, some offenders of the law who operate at night continue to paste posters on walls, bus stops, bins, under bridges among other public facilities.
The General Sectary of the Ghana Association of Visual Artist, Lawrence Agyemang called on the Accra Metropolitan Assembly to sanction anyone caught in the act of defacing the murals adding that, lots of investment have gone into the project and for that matter needs to be protected.
“This is an intellectual property; I will be very sad to find it defaced. At least people are being conscientize and you will hear people asking how we are going to maintain it; I believe that the Assemblies have by-laws against indiscriminate pasting of posters. These by-laws are enforceable… when you go contrary, they have sanctions”.
Some citizens who spoke to GhanaWeb believed that imposing a heavy fine on offenders will help save the city from being defaced.
“There should be people deployed to check the Interchange at night. If someone is caught, I think they should probably be sent to jail or they should be fined,” says Kelvin a student from the Ghana Institute of Journalism.
“Offenders should be fined heavily, that money can be used in painting other places. We should even arrest them” Sandra a resident of Accra stated.
The ‘Art for All Project’ by the Creative Arts Council is being undertaken by the Ghana Association of Visual Artists and Accra Dot Alt in partnership with Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly.
The murals which tell the Ghanaian story are expected to be replicated in major centers in the capital including the Kwame Nkrumah Circle, Danquah Circle, Efua Sutherland Park, Liberation Circle, and the High Street.
