Traders in Adum Kumasi in the Ashanti Regional capital have defied orders of the city authorities to relocate from the pavements and street corners.

The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) had begun a decongestion exercise Monday but the traders are unfazed.

Some of them have cited the failure of subsequent governments to complete satellite markets, as their reason for remaining on the streets of the Central Business District.

"Since the era of former President John Kufuor to date, the governments have failed to complete the markets for us. Even Kofrom and Kejetia markets remain uncompleted", a trader told Joy News’ Nana Yaw Gyima in the Akan dialect.

Other traders who spoke to Joy News lamented over the location of other sites designated for them by the city authorities.

The traders were early on relocated to the racecourse but displayed clear dislike for the site.

They said the land was not well developed hence their reluctance to relocate to the place adding that racecourse market is not customer friendly.

"Anytime we go there, we don’t make as much sales as we do when we are on the streets," a herbal balm dealer said.

The Joy News correspondent reports that when the decongestion exercise began Monday, some wares of the defaulting traders were seized.

“This morning, however, they [taskforce] are just walking around among the traders while business goes on as usual,” he said.

He reports that members of the taskforce declined to speak to the news team.

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