The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Dr Alfred Okoe Vanderpuiye, has led a surprise decongestion exercise at the central business district of Accra.
Dr Vanderpuiye was on his way to inspect road projects involving resurfacing works on roads in Accra totalling 100km as well as the mounting of road signs when he stopped suddenly at the TUC roundabout and directed all street vendors who had occupied pedestrian walkways and pavements to remove their wares.
In their efforts to attract customers, the street vendors had displayed their wares on the pavements and were thus obstructing the movement of people and vehicles in the area.
Moreover, quite a number of store owners in the vicinity had moved goods from their shops onto the pavements and the street and had compounded an already bad situation.
To make matters worse, the streets, walkways and drains were all dirty, with discarded items from the activities of the traders. There was an unpleasant smell from the drains.
Traders warned Obviously not happy with the situation, Dr Vanderpuiye warned the traders to desist from the wrongful practice of taking over the pavements and streets.
Interestingly, upon catching sight of the Chief Executive of the AMA, a number of the traders took to their heels while clutching their wares to their chests. Others who were caught unawares and confused by the commotion posed as mannequins by their wares.
The streets and pavements were cleared in just about 20 minutes into the exercise.
Dr Vanderpuiye expressed his disappointment with activities of the metro guards who are supposed to keep order in the city. He urged the Chief Metro Guard, Mr Joseph A. Okai, who is also the Head of Operations of the AMA Task Force and a part of Mr Vanderpuiye’s delegation, to ensure that the guards lived up to their responsibilities.
Not satisfied At the Osu Klottey Sub-Metro in Accra, Dr Vanderpuiye expressed dissatisfaction with ongoing road works in the area. The road in front of the Osu Salem 1 Preparatory School was still in a state of deterioration, with gravels strewn haphazardly everywhere.
The situation was not different in front of the Beijing Clinic where the poor road condition had made vehicular movement rather difficult. Gravels meant for road works had found its way into gutters and drainage systems.
Some residents say they have had to constantly collect gravels from the gutters and back onto the road to avoid the blockage of the drains.
Work again Dr Vanderpuiye requested the road contractor and supervisors from the Town and Country Planning to return to the roads “and this time make sure you do an excellent job so that we are not affected by the coming rains.”
With regard to the street-naming exercise in the metropolis, the Metropolitan Director of Town and Country Planning, Mr Kwadwo Yeboah, said 263 sign posts out of 775 had so far been mounted in the Osu Klottey area. He said another 260 sign posts out of an expected 289 posts for Ashiedu Keteke had also been fixed.
Encroachment According to him, land encroachment and indiscriminate positioning of shops along major roads in the metropolis were among the challenges hindering the smooth implementation of the exercise.
He cited the Kojo Thompson Road where street signs that had been fixed were obscured by nearby trading and business houses such that they were hardly seen.
Under the circumstances, he urged the assembly to communicate the importance of the exercise to the masses so that the huge investments made in the exercise would not go to waste.
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