Let’s Rebrand Accra & Not The Headmaster’s Stool

AMA (Accra Metropolitan Assembly) is a mother of three brats --- congestion, floods and filth. Of the three I think congestion is the oldest. Congestion creates filth because they clutter and when they clutter they deprive pedestrians and motorists space. Congestion impedes runoffs and waterways which also results floods. And I can tell you, Accra the beautiful city is running out of oxygen. It’s suffering from asphyxia—suffocating to death.

Rescuing Accra from this trouble had been a battle many of the city’s past mayors had lost miserably. Over time it appeared the mayoral position had become unattractive. Nobody fancied an office that was tinged with or deemed to have litany of problems, it seemed. This was in part due to the issues above-mentioned.

In fact some of the mayors left office badly bruised or battered. Bottom-line they couldn’t help save the life of the beautiful woman and so for decades now Accra is still in unconscious state. And it doesn’t appear the Assembly has a clear-cut solution to this chronic disease.

Why do I think so?
Basically, decongestion has become an annual ritual. Every year AMA decongests the city. Every year AMA drives away hawkers from the streets in Accra and every year we use or rehash the over-used phrase ‘to sanitise’ the city.’ The question is: When would Accra get sanitised or totally-decongested?

The irony is all the three problems and their associates didn’t come as a result of a big bang. They are all created by residents of Accra. Yes they’re created by people like you and me. There are some individuals that don’t care about Accra’s progress—cleanliness, beautification and health wise. They seem to be oblivious of the fact that what they litter today would create health problems tomorrow.

On Sunday 28 January 2018 the Assembly embarked on yet another exercise aimed at de cluttering Accra. I saw truckloads of billboards, beams, plates being cart away after the morning’s operation.

Is this the way we want our city?
You’d quickly say no. But have you as an individual, a celeb or artiste, a musician or Mr. so and so done a video or something to promote the city you claim you so love? Did you like the surroundings where you shot your videos?

Demons dance when the righteous fall says this writer. Indeed what my naked eyes have seen over the past few days in the wake of the head teacher‘s sexual escapade with his student has left me dumbfounded. The ‘Headmaster’s Stool ‘video has gone viral. The social Media have been inundated with kitchen stools. And the images have been shared perhaps a million times. I’ve never seen anything quite like it since we ushered into the New Year. Musicians, artistes; artisans and others seem to be cashing in on this video.

Certainly, kitchen stools have become so conspicuous at social functions. They’re in malls, in stores and in bus terminals. And I’ve no problem with that if that would help the carpenter at Sowotuom to make ends meet. My beef, though, if there’s need to create something good out of a bad situation then let’s create that from the filth that’s choking us .What stops us from creating videos that would feature for example a sanitary official dressed in knicker-bocker chasing a litterer with a white cane? So folks I’m challenging you to make come out with a video that would seek to promote Accra the same way you’d for the Headmaster’s stool. Is there one to take the challenge?

Meanwhile, the AMA exercise, which began on the Ring Road stretch, is expected to continue to Korle-Bu and its neighbourhoods. Billboards and signage causing clutter and congestion at traffic intersections and junctions are expected to be removed. Also, flagpoles placed on pedestrian walkways have been earmarked for removal by the authority.

In 2017, the AMA gave indications it was putting steps in place to sanitise advertising spaces by removing haphazardly-placed billboards and unpermitted signage. Some of these billboards have been described as threats to public safety because of a number of incidents involving them collapsing onto people and property.

Speaking after the AMA Bottom of Form
Accra Mayor, Mohammed Adjei Sowah condemned how some churches and corporate institutions advertise their institutions and events. He cited posters and banners of an upcoming programme of General Overseer of Perez Chapel International, Bishop Charles Agyinasare, dubbed “Festival of Miracles”, Mr. Sowah stated it is unacceptable and that even God will not be pleased with the level of the nuisance caused by the posters.

“Even God will not be happy to see how you hang your banners, it is unacceptable”, he said.

The Mayor also gave a stern warning to institutions to desist from such lawlessness or face the wrath of the Assembly. On his part, the Executive Director of the Advertisers Association of Ghana, Francis Dadzie is hopeful the Advertising Standards Bill will be passed to properly regulate the haphazard manner some billboards are mounted in the city.

Mr. Dadzie stated that the Advertising Standards Bill is back at the Trades Ministry to be presented to Cabinet because the previous parliament elapsed before it could be passed. He explained that the bill when passed will help regulate indiscriminate and unlawful posting of fliers and erection of signposts.

At the beginning of this month, January 2018, AMA, carried out a decongestion exercise in some parts of the Greater Accra region in a bid to make pavements in the capital pedestrian friendly. The affected areas of the decongestion were the Accra Central Business District, CBD, Kaneshie market area, N1 highway, Darkuman-Kokompe, Odorkor-Kwashieman road, Nima highway, Agbogbloshie, and Kwame Nkrumah interchange.