I CAN’T LOOK! The shocked Americans fire investigators stormed the Kumasi Central Market yesterday
ATTEMPTS BY the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) to reconstruct the burnt Kumasi Central Market was on Monday met with stiff resistance by irate traders.
Some of the affected traders, notably the women, stripped naked at the disaster scene to sternly caution the KMA to refrain from attempting to reconstruct the gutted portion of the market.
The angry market women went naked to register their displeasure about the move to have government to reconstruct the market.
The demonstrating traders stripped off before the two American fire investigators and the Kumasi city authorities in reaction to the news that government was considering reconstructing the market against their wish.
The shocking spectacle was said to have occurred in the presence of two fire investigators from America, who are in the country to assist government unravel what has led to the fire outbreaks at the markets.
The women’s action was said to be indecent; a situation which compelled one of the American fire investigators to close his eyes in shock and yelled “I can’t look, I can’t look”.
Reports have it that a group of policemen, who were armed-to-the-teeth, could not do anything to save the shocking spectacle as the angry-looking women went nude in public.
DAILY GUIDE was told that it took the intervention of some of the traders before their colleagues, who had stripped naked, could put their dresses back on and leave the scene, unscathed.
Other reports have it that the naked women also hurled insults, insinuations and curses at the assembly and the government, warning the two bodies not to interfere in the reconstruction of the gutted market.
The incident happened during a visit by city officials and the fire investigators to the market on Monday morning.
The traders accordingly vowed to rebuild their sheds and stalls that were razed to the ground by a ferocious fire which hit the ‘foss line’ section of the market in the early hours of Sunday.
The blaze started around 1:00am and lasted for close to 12 hours before fire-fighters were able to bring it under control.
Even though the cause of the fire remains unknown and has become a subject of investigation, the traders suspected a sinister plot by government to take away the sheds from them in the name of reconstruction.
This resulted in the half-naked protest by some of the women as officials paid a working visit to the site to assess the extent of damage and also console affected persons.
The Chairman of the Second-hand Clothing Retailer Association, Daniel Ankoma, told DAILY GUIDE they needed government’s assistance in terms of financial support, and not the reconstruction of the market.
Mr. Ankoma noted that any attempt by government to build their sheds would be fearlessly resisted at all cost since the place was outside the central market and was given to them by the Railway Corporation some decades ago.
The Chief Executive of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), Kojo Bonsu, led a team of government officials and the American fire investigators to assess the level of impact.
He promised to publish and implement the various recommendations by the investigators to prevent future occurrence of fire outbreaks.
The two American fire investigators, a male and female, were taken round the burnt area during which they took samples of materials that had been reduced to ashes, for preliminary investigations.
They barricaded a particular post and requested the market leaders not to touch anything.
KMA Softens Stance
DAILY GUIDE reports indicated that earlier the KMA, led by Kojo Bonsu, was determined to reconstruct the market; an action which the affected traders vehemently objected to.
Perhaps after realising the fury of the affected traders, especially those that went nude in public on Monday morning, the KMA had decided to back down on its decision.
Speaking at a hurriedly organised press conference in Kumasi late Monday, Kojo Bonsu said the assembly had decided to stay back and allow the affected traders to reconstruct the burnt market.
The KMA, he stated, had also decided to present a staggering GH¢200,000 to help the affected traders carry out the rebuilding of the gutted market on their own without any interference.
He said the affected traders appealed to the KMA to stay off and allow them to reconstruct the market and the assembly realised that the plea of the traders made sense.
He indicated that the market would now be closed to the public at 6:00pm in line with the assembly’s by-laws.
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