A group of traders operating at the Holy Garden Police Station Market near Circle in Accra have raised alarm over what they describe as attempts to forcibly evict them from their trading posts.
Identifying themselves as the Concerned Traders of Holy Garden Market, the group held a press conference on Thursday morning to voice their frustration and fear over what they claim is a deliberate plan to displace them in favor of private business interests.
According to the leadership of the market, if the eviction is carried out, it will affect the livelihoods of more than 3,000 traders, many of whom have operated in the area for years.
The traders have pointed fingers at a Chinese national businessman, accusing him of using alleged connections within government to push through plans that would see them removed from the market space.
“He came here in 2012 as a small bus operator with just two vehicles,” a spokesperson for the traders stated. “Today, he owns several buses, has constructed shops, and is expanding into various trading activities within and around the market. Now he wants to take over even more space, which will lead to our eviction,” he said.
The traders claim the businessman has been acquiring large portions of land in and around the market area under the guise of expansion, with the aim of monopolizing trading activities in the vicinity. They allege that he is attempting to buy out portions of the market square, threatening to displace long-standing local vendors in the process.
“This is not just about one man growing his business,” another trader said. “This is about the future of thousands of families who depend on this market to survive. We will not sit by and watch our source of livelihood be taken away from us.”
The group is calling on city authorities, the Ministry of Local Government, and other relevant stakeholders to intervene and halt any plans to evict them, insisting that the market is a public trading space and should remain so.
Meanwhile, efforts to reach the businessman for his side of the story have so far been unsuccessful.
Source:Lovinghananews.com
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