The Member of Parliament for the Odododiodoo constituency, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye has issued a one-week ultimatum to government to stop persons indiscriminately erecting containers in the capital from doing so.
According to the MP, authorities have resorted to the mounting of containers in the median of streets and other ceremonial parts of the city some of which he said includes Opera Square.
He alleged that some trees meant for the beautification of the city have also been uprooted to make way for such containers.
Addressing the media on Wednesday, April 7, 2021, the lawmaker said the Greater Accra Regional Minister must act immediately to resolve the trend.
“If by next week, the Regional Minister and his office had not stopped this wanton erection of containers in Accra, I, Nii Lante Vanderpuye, will mobilize concerned citizens of Accra to stop it and to make sure that we will bring discipline to the city”, he added.
He denied claims of having personal issues with “people doing business in Accra” however his position is that “Accra is the capital of Ghana and needs to be maintained with its beauty and discipline”.
On the issue of the felling of ornamental trees to make way for the erection of the containers, Mr. Vandepuye called on the authorities to be proactive in dealing with the menace.
“I will want the AMA together with the Ghana Police Service to look for the people who cut down those trees, and they should be surcharged with the cost of planting and nursing of a tree for about 20 years. We can’t allow this to go on.”
We’ve moved erected containers in Accra – Accra Mayor
Meanwhile, the Mayor of Accra, Mohammed Adjei Sowah has dismissed Nii Lante Vanderpuye’s claims.
“I am very much surprised he is saying so…I do not want to say that this is part of a plan to make some noise. The truth of the matter is that indeed some people had planned to put some containers there on Monday. That same Monday, we got them removed. For someone of his calibre to say those things without commending the actions we took means he is not serving the people well,” he said on Eyewitness News.
The Mayor however insisted that just one tree was uprooted to pave way for the erection of the containers.
“They cut one tree along that particular stretch to make way for the containers, but we have removed those containers. You know I am one of the environmentalists in the country and one of my passion is climate change, so I cannot allow trees to be cut in the city like that.”
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