The Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Assembly (EKMA) in the Western Region may have triggered a course of action that could put it on a collision course with “recalcitrant” occupants of stalls and shops at the Apremdo Market.
The Assembly is demanding the submission of allocation letters and payment records from the occupants to update its official records, an effort seen as necessary to curb chronic mismanagement and underutilization.
Despite substantial public investment over the years, the market has remained largely underutilized since its construction in 1996. Funding from central government transfers, internally generated revenue, and development programs such as the District Development Facility (DDF) has gone into infrastructure improvements, including boundary demarcation, drain construction, land reclamation for shoe traders, and a 2015 Infrastructural Improvement phase.
The Apremdo Market was initially conceived with good intentions. At a time when the Takoradi Market Circle was overcrowded and approaching its breaking point, Apremdo was envisioned to absorb the overflow.
The plan included modern stalls, shops, a bus terminal, and other facilities befitting a contemporary market—and it was constructed accordingly. However, its ambitious design clashed with entrenched trading patterns. The Takoradi Central Market remained the preferred hub due to its established customer base, higher foot traffic, and stronger economic viability, factors that infrastructure alone could not overcome.
Successive governments have repeatedly failed to relocate hawkers, dog chain sellers, and pavement traders to Apremdo. Market research indicates that low occupancy there is due to traders’ resistance to change, inadequate amenities including inconsistent electricity, poor sanitation, and limited security, transport accessibility issues, and the influence of politically exposed stall owners, who reportedly intervene to prevent repossession. Even incentives such as reduced inter- and intra-city travel fares have failed to draw traders to the site.
On any given day, a walk through Apremdo reveals long lines of empty stalls and shops. Some are broken down or beyond repair due to neglect. The few traders who have braved the odds complain of persistently low sales.
“We want to go back to selling on the streets. For years, it has been one promise after another that this market would be filled, but our colleagues keep trading where we were all chased off initially,” traders lament each year.
All the stalls and shops have owners, many of whom are politically exposed and maintain other shops in Takoradi or Kwesimintsim. Whenever the Assembly threatens repossession, these owners reportedly intervene, using their influence to fend off officials. This entrenched resistance rooted in historical distrust, mismanagement, and political interference has been a key factor in the failure of successive assemblies to enforce relocation, despite repeated decongestion exercises by both NDC and NPP administrations.
Now, EKMA, under the leadership of Majeed Dokurugu, is threatening to repossess the stalls and shops. “Failure to submit the allocation letters or payment records will constitute a total surrender of your allocated stall or store,” reads a letter issued by the Assembly’s Public Relations office.
Occupants of stalls and shops, including those in the EKMA Main Office, have until Friday, August 29, 2025, to comply.
But history suggests that this latest threat may falter. Previous assemblies, including the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly, issued similar warnings but failed to follow through, often due to intervention by politically connected owners and the traders’ persistent defiance. Without addressing the structural deficiencies, social dynamics, and historical distrust that have long undermined compliance, EKMA’s ultimatum may once again prove ineffective.
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Source:3news.com
