PHOTOS: Tarkwa residents demonstrate over poor roads

• Posted on April 10, 2019April 10, 2019
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Some irate residents of one of the natural resource rich cities in Ghana, Tarkwa a mining community in the Western Region this morning (Wednesday 10^th April, 2019) are demonstrating over the poor state of their roads.

The demonstrators who are burning car tyres on the main Tarkwa – Ahwietieso road have blocked the road to all forms of vehicular movement. This demonstration is to express their displeasure of the poor state of their main road which is the only entrance and exit route to the city.

According to some of the demonstrators who spoke to www.233times.net, the demonstration will continue throughout the day. “We are not stopping now, we are not stopping in the afternoon, enough is enoguh!” a young man in his early twenties told www.233times.net. “Even our Chiefs have demonstrated over this road and nothing is done, we are fed up, dust is killing us” a mother of three, Auntie Afia also spoke to www.233times.net. Some of the placards the demonstrators were holding reads ‘The Golden City is naked,’ ‘Dust Is killing us,’ ‘Pregnant women are dying,’ ‘GMC must have their by-pass,’ ‘Fix our roads now,’ ‘Tarkwa to Takoradi 4 hours,’ amongst others.  

The dusty nature of the road creates disturbing vision for drivers who use the road on daily basis and also according to a Doctor who spoke to www.233times.net on the basis of anonymity, the mining activities coupled with the dusty nature of the road in the Metropolis have created respiratory related diseases for many of residents and it is the most commonly diagnosed diseases in the area.

In a Facebook post by Editor-in-Chief of www.233times.net on Tuesday 9th April, 2019 (a day before the demonstration) after his visit to Tarkwa, he lamented the poor state of the road and added that #TheYouthOfTarkwaAreNotAngryEnough;

In 2018, during a tour of Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh and his deputy, Mrs Barbara Oteng Gyasi to the area, residents blocked the roads preventing the Minister and his deputy from entering the town until something has been done about their roads.

Tarkwa produces gold, manganese, rubber, timber, bauxite amongst other natural resources.

Photos of the demonstration below;

Author: Nana Kwesi Coomson (www.233times.net) @nkcoomson on Twitter/Instagram