Accra, May 18, GNA - The Traditional Chief Priest of the Ga Traditional area, Numo Tumo Yartey III, has given a three-day ultimatum to Mr Frederick Opoku, spokesman of the Market Women Association of Ghana (MAWAG), to appear before the traditional court to explain his standing in Accra, which gives him the power to demand the resignation of the Mayor of Accra.

"We will impose a fine on him if he fails to appear," he said, at a press conference organized by the traditional priests, priestesses and other traditional leaders in Accra on Wednesday.

"We the Ga people have carefully observed a negative trend creeping into our societal fabric that is alien to the Ga traditional and cultural values, which if not nipped in the bud, may have adverse effects on the development of the Metropolis and the region as a whole," Numo Yartey said.

He added that posterity would judge them if they allowed the erosion of their cultural and traditional values. Numo Yartey said in as much as they respected the constitutional rights of Ghanaians to freedom of speech they would appreciate that people and groups made responsible statement, especially when it concerned the development of the region and the country. The Chief Priest said the recent exercise embarked on by the Accra Metro Assembly (AMA) to prevent hawkers from selling on the streets and pavement had tremendous improvement in sanitation and discipline on some roads. He, however, noted that the group calling itself MAWAG, which was not registered and had been disowned by the market women and hawkers they claim to represent, had failed to see the positive signs in this exercise. The Chief Priest said the group had, instead, been calling for the mayor's resignation with the vilest language they could command amidst unfounded allegations against AMA personnel. "It is unfortunate that they have also failed to appreciate the fact that Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2008 Section 29 prohibits people from walking along or across streets illegally," he said, adding that there were also harmful effects of carbon monoxide emitted by vehicles on these hawkers.

"As much as everyone has a right to earn a living we are advising that they do it decently," Numo Yartey said. He said in view of the challenges hawking was bringing to the Metropolis they appreciated the good works the mayor was doing to bring sanity and discipline unto the roads.