Over 10 Tricycle Riders Arrested For Defying KMA Directive

Police have arrested at least 10 tricycle operators in Kumasi after they clashed with city guards from the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA).

Chaos ensued on Tuesday, August 1, 2023, after KMA began the implementation of a ban on the movement of tricycles, popularly known as Pragya, in the Central Business District (CBD).

The assembly announced the implementation of the directive in the marked-out areas last week to address the city’s traffic congestion problem.

However, when the city guards set out to ensure the riders complied with the directive, the riders strongly resisted their efforts leading to the clash.

Following the riots and the arrests, KMA deployed police and military personnel to the CBD to enforce the ban.

The tricycle riders have expressed strong opposition to the decision over the past months, but the assembly insisted that it remains resolute in implementing the directive.

According to the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of KMA, Henrietta Afia Konadu Aboagye, the directive is not a complete ban but a restriction on their movement in the CBD.

She said the directive was supposed to take effect on June 15, 2023. However, KMA postponed the date to sensitize the drivers adequately.

“So we met with their executives on May 9 to let them know that the move was to reduce congestion in the CBD. They asked for some time to speak with their members.

“The recalcitrant ones who will force their way into the CBD will have their vehicles impounded and taken to the Central Police Station or the assembly’s towing site, where they will be fined,” she stressed.