Some market women in the Sissala East Municipality have expressed concern about the deplorable nature of roads in the Sisalla enclave, which affects their businesses.
Hajia Asana Senjeh, a market queen in the Sissala area, has blamed low patronage to markets lately on the permanent inaccessible roads in the enclave.
She told the GNA that: “As a people, we feel so cheated, look around us, almost all the roads are not tarred, I started a business about forty years ago, those days, we felt that government alone could not do it, so we would go out, carry stones and drivers got involved in fixing and patching roads, can you believe the roads have remained the same up to date. I still go to the markets every day but not many people go to the market these days because of the poor nature of the roads.
She said the Bugubelle market, which used to be one of the most well-patronized markets in the Sissala area is beginning to lose the traders and the people that went there. The people in the communities spend more money coming to the market than what they will get, why will they come?
The roads from Kulfuo, Tasor, Welembelle, Sentie, and Bandei are all looking terrible, and nothing is being done about them.”
She said: “We feel abandoned, and armed robbers are taking advantage of the situation and collecting our money all the time, the last time we got attacked between Funsi and Tumu, there was another robbery between Han, Jeffisi and Tumu, if the roads are good, it will be difficult for them to easily target us.”
Hajia Senjeh said she had seen several accidents leading to the loss of lives of some of her business partners whilst others sustained permanent disabilities through accidents due to bad road.
She therefore appealed to the government to pay attention to the Sissala roads since the area deserved to benefit from the national cake.
Madam Rahanatu Ibrahim, a trader who sells fruits, transporting them from one market to the other, said that due to the poor nature of the roads the business was no longer profitable.
“Most people are no longer interested in the markets these days because of bad Roads and the government needs to pay more attention to the road network here,” she said.
Madam Rafatu Ahmed Lukuwie, a woman farmer based in Sakai in the Sissala East told the GNA that the roads from the farm to the market is so bad and only very old and rickety vehicles ply there, which discourages others from farming.
Madam Rafatu lamented that “Sometimes my goods get locked up here, and if I must send them to a market centre like Techiman, Kumasi or Accra, I have to pay more than the normal rate, my farm produce sometimes also gets stuck including farm inputs and this is hurting my business as it continues to reduce my capital in hand.
Madam Damata Issifu, a farmer, said as a result of the bad roads, vehicles and farm implements such as tractors and harrows easily break down and this increases cost of production.
“We sit on motor bicycles and tricycles largely to our farms as there are no vehicles in some areas and the big potholes tend to affect our health while some pregnant women get miscarriages from the bumpy roads”, she said.
The market women and farmers therefore appealed to the government to get roads in the Sissala enclave fixed as it has the potential to increase food production and facilitate trade among the people and beyond.
GNA