Wa, May 19, GNA- Traders and the travelling public in the Upper West Region have expressed grave concern about the activities of armed robbers on the Wa-Bole-Techiman road, which had claimed lives and robbed several of them of their property.

The fear of armed robbers among the travelling public, especially traders who ply their trade between the region and the south, had discouraged them from transacting their businesses, a situation which was impacting negatively on the socio-economic progress of the people. The remoteness of communities along the road, some traders said, makes the road suitable for robbers to operate at will to the detriment of the travelling public.

The pathetic situation has become an everyday discussion forum for the people of the region, especially at the Ghana Private Road and Transport Union terminal in Wa where passenger group to board vehicles to the south. The Industrial Relations Officer of the Wa Regional Branch of the GPRTU, Mr. Nuhu Mahama, told the GNA that its outfit was considering daytime as the departure time for all passengers travelling to the south.

He noted that even though travelling during daytime could not make the road secure from armed robbery, it would help reduce their activities.

Mr. Mahama, on behalf of the travelling public appealed to the government to show sympathy to the people of the region who are already deprived by deploying a joint military and police patrol team on the road to secure it to enhance brisk business transaction. He also appealed to traditional rulers and the Regional Police Command of the Upper West, Northern and Brong Ahafo Regions to pool their resources and efforts by forming Community Watchdog Committees along the road to weed out all people of suspected characters. "Fighting crime should be of concern to all and we must not relent in our efforts at ensuring the security of our people", he said.