He says there are technocrats whose jobs it is to maintain the road but their negligence led to such deaths, hence they must be sued.
Speaking on Citi TV/Citi FM’s news analysis programme, The Big Issue on Saturday, Nii Kpakpo said the residents could jointly take that action.
“It’s about time Ghanaians started taking some of these technocrats to court. I would advocate that the families of those who have lost relatives should put a class action in and sue those responsible for maintaining those roads.”
“It is incumbent on those public authorities to maintain those roads in a condition that is safe for the pedestrians to use. As citizens, we have a right to have those roads in a motorable situation, and as pedestrians, we have a right to cross those roads safely. And so people must be accountable,” he added.
Residents along the stretch have been agitating for footbridges to be fixed on the N4 highway after they claimed close to 190 pedestrians have been knocked down by speeding vehicles; a figure the Police have disputed.
The killing of a 19-year old female student from the West Africa Senior High School, WASS, last Thursday, led to a massive protest where the residents burnt tyres and blocked cars from using the road.
A day after the protest, the streetlights on the highway were fixed and government promised to see to the fixing of the bridge in a week.
Nii Kpakpo on the Big Issue also called on the government to institute a scholarship scheme at WASS in memory of the student who died.
“Government needs to honor the memories of those who have sacrificed for the current action to get to where we have gotten to. I would advocate for either a fund or a memorial to be put in especially for that little girl who lost her life. All of them are important, but I am picking her because I think she was the catalyst for the demonstration.”
“So maybe a scholarship fund can be instituted in her memory at West Africa Senior High School in memory so that we don’t forget that through her death things were fixed. I hope wherever she is she rests in peace,” he added.
Technocrats responsible for Adentan-Madina road must resign
Assemblymember for the Gbentanaa electoral area in the Adentan Municipality, Stephen Kwesi Acquah who was also on The Big Issue said technocrats whose negligence led to the killing of several pedestrians on the Adentan-Madina highway must resign.
The assembly member insisted that those whose duty it was to have the streetlights and others including the footbridges fixed but failed to do so, must be tender in their resignation letters.
“It’s been ten years of complaints, ten years of trying to get our authorities to fix these things for us…people are trying to push all the blames on government – the Minister for Roads and Highways, Minister for Transport, Interior Ministry and as well even the president himself. President Akufo-Addo and the highways minister have put certain technocrats in charge of these things. Don’t we have the highways authority CEO?”
“Must it take the Minister of Highways to come and fix streetlights?
Technocrats who are supposed to make sure certain elementary things are done hide behind negligence and then we push blame on the government. For Christ sake, just after 24 hours after the incident happened, our streetlights are working…those behind this must resign,” Kwesi Acquah added on The Big Issue.
Work to begin on Madina-Adentan footbridges next week
After the protest, the government subsequently announced that work will commence on the uncompleted footbridges on the Madina-Adenta highway from next week to forestall further fatalities on that route.
“Work is to be done on an accelerated basis with multiple contractors to ensure quick completion,” a statement from the inter-ministerial Committee on Roads and Highways, Transport and Interior stated.
The statement added that “this is in accordance with already commenced processes prior to the unfortunate incident that occurred on Thursday.”
Madina-Adentan road death ‘an unnecessary loss’ – Nana Addo
President Nana Akufo-Addo also issued a statement extending his condolences to the family of the latest victim of a road accident on the Madina-Adenta highway.
The President described the death as “an unnecessary loss.”
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