Traders assault AMA task-force members at Circle Interchange

Four officials of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) working at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle interchange in Accra, have been attacked by some angry traders.

The traders unleashed their physical aggression on the officials when they tried to evict them from the pavement on Tuesday evening.

One of the victims, Yunus Hamza, told Citi News that most of their attackers were drivers of the VIP station who have vowed to resist any attempt to evict the hawkers.

“Three days ago, at about 9:00am while on their usual patrol, we saw someone selling on the pavement and some drivers seated on a bench across the pavement. When we approached them, and told them it was wrong, another driver came from the station and told us that they have been instructed to beat anyone who attempts to evict them mercilessly,” he said.

“Moments after, our boss came around and confronted the same people, one of the drivers stuck his arm with a log. Our boss told us to return because he was sensing danger. We were just about to leave when more drivers came around and begun pelting us with stones. One of them came with a brick and hit my chin with it. I had part of a tooth broken because of that,” he added.

According to Hamza, the police say they have arrested one person in connection with the incident.




“We reported to the Kaneshie Police and wrote our statement on Wednesday. We are told they’ve arrested two people, but we are yet to see them,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Numo Blafo II, who spoke to Citi News on the matter, condemned the incident, and called on the media to support the assembly fight such happenings.

He said one of the victims was currently in a critical condition.

“Two of them are not here, one is in a critical condition,” he said.

He said his outfit would not retreat in its operation to rid the pavements of hawkers’ due to the challenges it poses to the management of the city.

Source: citifmonline.com