KUDOS, AMA (MAY 26, 2010)

ONE of the most difficult challenges city authorities in the capital have faced over the years is the use of unauthorised areas for trading activities.
Attempts made in the past to address that trend had been unsuccessful because of what many considered as the lack of sustained efforts and the political will to pursue decongesting exercises to their logical conclusion.
The activities of traders operating in unauthorised areas do not only create environmental problems but also contribute to the suffocating traffic situation in some parts of the central business district of the capital.
Thus, when the NDC government took office last year, it was a challenge it was expected to deal with decisively. And so far, under the able supervision of the Mayor of Accra, Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije, the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has succeeded in restoring some sanity to some parts of the capital.
Indeed, the AMA has gone about the exercise with so much tact that in cases where there had initially been some resistance, tension had been appropriately dealt with and traders had co-operated to ensure that there was law and order.
The DAILY GRAPHIC, therefore, commends the AMA for the efforts it is making to ensure that the city is well organised and less congested.
We duly recognise that this has not been an easy task, especially considering the fact that sometimes the livelihoods of traders may be at stake and resettling them may take some time.
Yet, the AMA has been guided by the national interest and that, truly, is the spirit that should drive the operations of government agencies and institutions tasked with ensuring that there is law and order in the country.
As we laud the AMA for its efforts, we wish to caution that unless those efforts are sustained, all the gains made will be lost in no time.
Past efforts to decongest some parts of the country took off brightly, only to fade away after some protests from traders and also after the authorities had relaxed their efforts, largely as a result of pressure from politicians.
But we hope this time around the city authorities will be given every support to carry out the exercise to its logical conclusion. There is still so much work to be done to rid Accra of filth and haphazard development and the AMA cannot afford to rest on its laurels.
It is also important to recognise efforts that have been made to ensure that buildings on water courses and other unauthorised areas, such as those marked for roads, are demolished.
Most often, although some people are cautioned about the price they could pay for such unauthorised constructions, they go ahead because for a long time there has been a culture of impunity that has been allowed to grow and eat deep into the fabric of Ghanaian society.
That apart, many landlords whose houses have been demolished have had cause to blame some unscrupulous officials who might have collected bribes to grant the permits for those buildings. It is, therefore, important to deal with those officials, even as the houses are demolished, to ensure that the canker is dealt with in a comprehensive manner.
It is no secret that many European and American cities have always inspired us with awe and wonder and it stands to reason that if we subject ourselves to law and order in our development agenda, we will also reach those lofty heights.
All over the country, there are so many unauthorised structures in city and town centres, actively being used for commercial and residential purposes, and it is our hope that other assemblies will boldly replicate the efforts of the AMA to help make the country more organised and serene.
A refreshing dawn has broken; let no one attempt to stop it.