Hawkers who attempt to stage a come back and hawk in the streets of Tamale will be chased, arrested and prosecuted by the law court, Metropolitan Chief Executive Iddrisu Musah Superior has warned.
According to the mayor, the assembly efforts in ensuring sanity on the streets of Tamale particularly, the central business district cannot be taken as joke.
Mr Superior he is affectionately call said the assembly cannot compromise its stand in putting structures and business activities in the right places.
Two months ago, the assembly hinted its intention to instill sanity in the metropolis and has since being engaging major stakeholders including political parties, chiefs and religious leaders to prevent agitations from the affected traders.
The assembly together with the stakeholders agreed that by 15th May, all hawkers vacate the streets.
At dawn on Monday at about 5 a.m., Mr. “Superior” led the assembly accompanied by armed security personnel drawn from the army, police and fire service to storm the central business district where the taskforce under the supervision of the military removed both wooden and mental containers they could lay their hands on.
Speaking to the media, the mayor said he did not much care about any political consequences so far as it does not go against the president Nana Akufour Addo agenda. “I don’t care about the political ramifications of my actions because it is the in best interest of the citizens,” the mayor said.
He continued: “I am doing this because of the health and safety of the people because I will held responsible for any disaster by my superiors, the national security and the presidency will be on me; I won’t allow any fatality to occur under my watch.”
“The central business district is often too crowded as a result of the incorrect usage of the street and after my confirmation I made a promise and that’s what we are going to do,” Mr Superior stated. “Political parties have intervene but I told them if you don’t want me to work then leave me,” the visible agitated mayor told the media.
As a warning to recalcitrant traders and hawkers, the mayor said emphatically that the assembly has trained a thirty member task-force to ensure sustainability and no hawker will be allowed to come back because four police posts will be erected on vantage points to deal with lawbreakers.
