Tricycle operators on Wednesday August 2, 2023 protested and blocked some roads in the Kumasi Metropolis of the Ashanti Region leading to a gridlock in parts of the Central Business District.
The tricycle operators said they were protesting against the directive by the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly KMA, to ban them from operating in the Kumasi City.
The ban which came into force on July 27, 2023, according to the Transport Department of KMA is part of efforts to address traffic congestion and enhance pedestrian safety in the bustling area.
The protest initially started as a press conference at the Central Mosque in Asawase, when the tricycle operators said they had received information of security officials preventing their members from entering the city from multiple entries.
The operators following the report took to the streets and blocked some major roads leading to Kejetia, causing significant disruptions to traffic flow and daily activities.
The situation caused commuters to be stranded while some people came down from their vehicles and started trekking.
Speaking to OTEC News Reporter Jacob Agyenim Boateng, Financial Secretary of the Pragia Workers Association of Ghana, Seidu Rauf said cutting their operations from the Central Business District of Kumasi was going to collapsed their business.
“Our members rely heavily and on ferrying passengers and goods within the city center, and so restricting them from the city would adversely affect our livelihoods and render most of us jobless “.
“Most of our members are unemployed graduates while others stopped working at galamsey sites as ordered by government, now they are operating tricycle but the assembly is terrorizing them with security, do they want us to engage in robbery?”. He quized.
The tricycle operators have vowed to embark on multiple demonstrationS in the city if the KMA fails to rescind on their decision to stop them from entering the city.
Source: Ghana/otecfmghana.com
