Some traders at the Kasoa market, in the Awutu Senya East Municipality, returned to continue with brisk business today, Sunday, a few minutes after a disinfection exercise was undertaken at the market.
Some of the traders earlier defied an order for them to close their shops and leave the market for the exercise to proceed.
This created some form of friction between the traders and the sprayers and a taskforce from the Municipal Assembly.
Citi News’ Nii Armah reported that there was confusion at the market as traders were forced to leave their stalls to make way for the disinfection exercise.
The taskforce reportedly ravaged through market women, overturning their tables, seizing and destroying their wares in the process.
One of of the frustrated traders and shoppers told Citi News that “This morning I was coming from the house when I saw them coming. They asked us to go.”
“They have seized some of our wares. We decided to do our final business today but the exercise will not give us the opportunity to do so. We were not given prior notice,” another trader said.
The disinfection exercise forms part of measures to curb the spread of the novel Coronavirus.
Following the announcement of a lockdown of Accra, Kumasi and Tema in a bid to combat Coronavirus, some Ghanaians have since yesterday, Saturday been trooping to markets to make purchases.
Kasoa is part of the areas earmarked to be locked down on Monday, March 30, 2020.
The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development announced that a disinfection exercise in all markets in the Ahafo, Bono and Bono East Regions will take place on Monday, March 20, 2020, just like similar exercises embarked on in the Greater Accra and Ashanti Region in the past week.
Monday’s exercise will affect 43 markets in the Ahafo Region, 125 and 78 markets in the Bono and the Bono East Region respectively.
These markets will, however, be opened to the public on Tuesday, March 31, 2020, after the day’s closure.
“A number of activities have been initiated including the disinfection of markets, public education and sensitization of market women on COVID -19. In view of this, the general public is hereby informed of the disinfection of Forty-Three (43) markets in Ahafo Region, One Hundred and Twenty-Five (125) markets in Bono Region, and Seventy-Eight (78) markets in Bono East Region on Monday, 30th March 2020,” a statement from the Ministry stated.
It concluded that:
“The Ahafo, Bono and Bono East Regional Coordinating Councils are to coordinate and ensure compliance with the above directive by MMDAs in the regions. The Ministry requests the cooperation of the general public especially our traders and all persons conducting businesses in the markets, in this all-important exercise.”
President Nana Akufo-Addo has said the disinfection exercises at markets is one of the measures the government is adopting to check the spread of the coronavirus.
A day before such exercises, business heightens in most markets as many throng the market centres to buy goods and wares ahead of the disinfection exercise.
Some buyers have however lauded the initiative but asked for more sensitization.
