Hawkers in the Tamale metropolis have up to 15th June 2017 to stop trading along the major roads in the central business district, the Tamale Metropolitan Chief Iddrisu Musah Superior has announced.
The mayor’s ultimatum follows series of meetings with some key personalities in the metropolis over the plan decongestion.
Hawkers along all the Aboabu stretch from Alhaji Alhassan Iddrisu high-rise building to Aboabu market area are expected to vacate the street considered dangerous to their lives.
The assembly’s actions will be enforced by the both the police and the military, the mayor said. Using security forces to enforce the assembly’s decision stems from the experience of previous mayors who had similar decongestion plans, but could not implement them because of fierce resistance from traders.
Even though the decision according to the Tamale mayor is tough, decongesting the streets will be in the best interest of everyone especially traders. The elaborate plan when carried out will be one of the largest undertaking the fastest growing city in West Africa has ever witnessed in its history.
Briefing news editors Tuesday morning, at the regional coordinating council in Tamale, Mr. Musah Superior said his outfit’s intended decongestion of city streets has the blessings of revered chiefs, religious and traditional leaders in Tamale.
To avoid any appearance of politicization of the decongestion plan, representatives of the major parties will be involved in all aspects.
Mr. Musah said: “I have been advised not to do it but as far as I remain chief executive officer of Tamale, it is my responsibility to ensure sanity in the interest of the people.”
The metropolis according to the mayor is in state of chaos, the mayor said, but refrained from blaming his predecessors, adding that he will instill discipline in the metropolis.
The mayor told journalists ahead of Wednesday’s news conference that he and officials of the assembly together with members of the metropolitan security committee will on Thursday embark on an outreach visit to the central business district to assess the chaotic atmosphere of the city and also to interact with traders.
“I lived in three local government areas in London and saw how local government structures work, so I want with the support of assembly staff to turn Tamale into a city like London,” the mayor said.
On the sustainability of the exercise, Mr Superior said a police precinct will be erected at the Aboabu end and another one situated around the taxi rank to monitor recalcitrant hawkers who may want to return to the streets.
Regularizing Tricycle operators
City authorities the mayor explained, would have to regularize tricycle operators widely known in Tamale as “yellow yellow” in accordance with road safety regulations.
A bitter war of words is currently raging between traditional taxi drivers anD “yellow yellow” operators over who has the right to conduct transport business in the metropolis.