Accra (Greater Accra) 21 Dec. '98

Two days after the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) demolishedthe slaughter house at James Town, butchers and meat sellers continue to engage in brisk business in the rubble. Livestock farmers also continue to troop to the area with live sheep and goatsto sell. A visit to the site today reveal that the butchers were operatingfrom tents they had erected from bricks and wood gathered from the demolishedstructure. They keep the meat in an abandoned building close to the sea whilethey wash and dress the meat in the sea. Some were seen trying to rebuild parts of the slaughter house. Last Saturday, AMA began the demolition of the slaughter house after an AccraHigh Court gave the go ahead. The butchers had been asked to vacate the slaughter house due to its unhygienicconditions and the deplorable nature of the building. They were asked to use the new abattoir off the Accra-Tema motorway. An official at the AMA security department expressed shock at the "stubbornness"of the butchers and members of the public who patronise their meat. He said AMA has not completed the demolition exercise because the equipment brokedown. "The equipment is being repaired and the exercise should be completed withinthe next two days". He advised the public not to buy meat from the butchers, he was however unable to say what measures AMA would take to keep the butchers away from the area.