CSOs thwarting AMA's efforts to enforce law on selling on pavements - PRO

Numo Blafo, Public Relations Officer of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), has accused some Civil Society Organisations (CSO) as thwarting efforts of the Assembly to clear the pavements of hawkers.

He said "Some of them encourage and motivate the hawkers not to comply with the Assembly's bye-laws and regulations on hawking along the pavements".

However, Numo Blafo failed to name any CSO.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Friday, Numo Blafo pointed out that anytime the Assembly tried to enforce the regulations and bye-laws, "Some CSOs tried to protest for them, making the entire exercise fruitless.

The PRO said what the CSOs forget were the dangers involved in selling on the pavements, noting that there had been situations where vehicles with faulty brakes had run into hawkers on pavements".

He added that the hawkers denied pedestrians access to the pavement and said: “If you have the freedom to earn a living, it does not mean that you should deny others freedom of movement”.

Numo Blafo noted that it was the duty of the AMA to ensure traders operated in congenial atmosphere in the markets available which had empty spaces, but some of the traders complained that customers were reluctant to purchase items from the markets.

The hawkers said most customers rather preferred shopping on the pavements where they had easy access compared to the markets.

He said the recent exercise at the National Theatre and Tema Station was not connected to partisan politics, adding "This year being an election year would not prevent the AMA from executing its mandate to the people".

Numo Blafo noted that the periodic rise in the number of hawkers on the pavements was due to the increase in mostly the youth from the rural areas migrating to urban areas including graduates from the first and second cycle institutions who could not afford to further their education.

"Although the hawkers pay some revenue to the Assembly, it did not have statistics on them from 2011-2012."

He appealed to the media to assist the AMA in educating the hawkers on the dangers involved in their activities.**