Swedru Market women demonstrate over forceful eviction

The Agona Swedru Central Market Women on Tuesday staged a demonstration against Agona West Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Evans Addison Onomah Coleman, over their forcible eviction from the back of the central market.

The demonstrators, numbering about 100, accused the MCE of failing to honour an agreement to seal a pavement to enable them to do their business.

The traders were joined by the Agona West Constituency Executives of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) led by Mr David Essandoh, the Constituency Organizer.

The market women and the party members resisted efforts by the MCE, accompanied police personnel from Swedru Divisional Police Command to drive them away from the occupied place.

Mr Essandoh helped the market women to remove some barricades on the edge of gutters, fixed by the Assembly to prevent the women from displaying their wares on the roadside.

It took the police over two hours to control vehicular and pedestrian movements after the MCE had left the scene to avoid being attacked.

A trader, who gave her name as Veronica, told the media they were highly disappointed in the MCE because he was yet to fulfill his promise but was sacking them from the place.

Madam Veronica said the MCE was not being fair to them and appealed to the President, Nana Akufo Addo to call the MCE to order since Christmas was far approaching and they needed to work to cater for their children.  

Mr Felix Yeboah, another trader, said, ‘’we are humbly appealing to the President to remove the MCE from office to ensure peace and development in Agona West.’’

He said the MCE was causing serious disaffection among the traders, market women and his own party and if he was not checked it would bring disaster to the party and create huge disunity in the Agona West Constituency.

Mrs Florence Yamoah, Agona West Women Organizer of NPP, who spoke to the media said Christmas was just around the corner and women had contracted loans to do business and pay for them.

She said the executive members of the party picked information that the MCE was going to evict the market women, so they called him to discuss the way forward to ensure peace.

The Women Organizer said the party executives, council of elders and the MP, Mrs Cynthia Morrison and others met the MCE, but he vehemently denied knowledge of the eviction.

She said the constituency executives, the MP and entire members of the party were shocked to see the MCE used police and Assembly Staff, forcibly evicting the market women.

The Women’s Organizer said the party would never allow the MCE to frustrate the growth and development of the party.

Mr David Essandoh, the Organizer, told the Media that the party would not sit down unconcerned for the MCE to break the front of the party, adding that executives and members would resist the oppressors’ rule of the MCE.

The MCE on his part told the media that he decided to evict the market women who were selling on the roadside for their own safety, without any malice.

Mr Coleman denied allegations that he had been induced by a business woman in the town to evict the market women from the place where they sell their wares.

The MCE also denied the report that he had met the MP and Constituency executives over the eviction of the market women. Mr Coleman said there was a stakeholders’ meeting, which included chiefs on the exercise and was, therefore, surprised  of the demonstration against him.

Source: Ghana News