AMA arrests coconut trader for unauthorised use of bus stop as storage facility

Emmanuel Awotwi, a 46-year-old coconut trader, was arrested by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) for allegedly converting a designated bus stop and pedestrian walkway into an unauthorised storage and trading space. The arrest occurred after more than 500 coconuts were discovered occupying a substantial section of a bus stop along Professor John Evans Atta Mills High Street, near the Arts Centre. The AMA stated that Mr. Awotwi's actions contravened the AMA Control of Hawkers By-law, 2017, particularly sub-section (d), which prohibits traders from causing obstruction or impeding the free movement of pedestrians and vehicular traffic.

Mr. Awotwi admitted that he regularly transports coconuts from Takoradi to Accra for wholesale distribution to retailers operating within the Arts Centre enclave. He explained that consignments are typically delivered during the night before being distributed to individual traders the following morning. On the night preceding the operation, he was unable to distribute the entire consignment, leaving a significant quantity of coconuts stacked at the bus stop overnight until the arrival of the AMA enforcement team the next morning.