It was a chaotic scene Tuesday morning at the Asafo Neoplan station in Kumasi when some traders at the popular bus terminal, resisted an attempt by a new transport operator to operate from the area.
The angry traders blocked portions of the road to the terminal to prevent 2M Express, a new transport company owned by Member of Parliament Bantama, Daniel Okyem Aboagye, from entering to load.
According to them, the area where 2M Express is trying to use as its loading bay is their trading spot, hence will not allow the transport operator to take over the place and render them jobless.
They have thus vowed to resist any attempt to turn their trading area into a bus terminal.
“If the Bantama MP wants to establish a transport business, he should rather consider doing so in his constituency and not here. We won’t fold our arms and watch him render us jobless,” one of the protesting traders told 3news.com.
A timely intervention by the police restored sanity to the densely populated terminal, which has become the hub for intercity transport operators.
Chief Executive of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Osei Assibey Antwi, told 3news.com 2M Express has no permit to operate from the disputed spot.
“The assembly has not given that transport operator any permit so I have asked the development control director to force them to cease operations. The assembly is ready to assist any transport operator conduct business smoothly but not at the detriment of others,” he said.
Meanwhile, management of 2M Express have not yet commented on the issue but the Manager at the terminal told journalists he will comment on the issue later.
By Ibrahim Abubakar|3news.com|Ghana