The Concerned Citizens of Ashaiman took to the streets on Tuesday in a demonstration named “Fix Our Roads” to voice their demand for improved road networks within the municipality.
Protesters, dressed in red, blocked the Ashaiman Traffic Intersection, causing disruptions to commuters and burning vehicle tires as part of their protest.
Chanting and holding placards with messages such as “Our Businesses are Collapsing as a Result of Bad Roads; Fix Them Now,” “We pay taxes; fix our roads,” and “Good roads promote businesses,” the demonstrators sought to draw attention to the deteriorating road conditions in Ashaiman.
Mr. Freeman Tsekpo, the Assembly Member for Nii Komieteh Electoral Area and leader of the group presented a petition to Mr. Albert Otchere, the Ashaiman Municipal Chief Executive, for submission to the government.
Tsekpo emphasized that the demonstration aimed to highlight the perilous state of the roads and call for immediate action to address the life-threatening road conditions in Ashaiman.
He expressed the frustration of Ashaiman residents, who have endured poor roads despite repeated promises from government officials.
Tsekpo revealed that out of the municipality's 166 km road network, only 28 km were paved, and only 2.7 km of that was considered to be in good condition.
According to Tsekpo, the government awarded 21 km of roads to Ashaiman in 2016, but they were later diverted to Tema in early 2017.
He also noted that in the past six years, the government pledged to improve 16 km of roads but had only completed 1.4 km, leaving many roads in a state of disrepair.
The demonstrators called on the government to address specific road sections, including the Ashaiman Municipal Traffic Light to Presby Junction section of the Ashaiman-Adjie Kojo Road, the Ashaiman Main Market to Lebanon section of the Ashaiman overhead-Zenu Road, the Ashaiman Newtown junction to Afariwaa junction road, and the Community 22 and Lebanon inner roads.
The group threatened to escalate their protest by picketing at the Ministry of Roads in Accra if they did not witness any improvements within two months.
Reporting by Laudia Sawer: Editing by Adewale Adejoke