By Sammuel Ayammah
Butchers operating in the Bolgatanga Municipality of the Upper East Region have embarked on an indefinite strike over efforts by the Municipal Assembly to relocate them to a new abattoir at Yorogo.
According to the butchers, the new abattoir is not only far from the town, but they were not consulted.
The Bolgatanga Municipal Assembly, said the dilapidated state of the old abattoir and its attendant environmental conditions compelled them to construct a new abattoir at Yorogo, a suburb of Bolga, at a cost of GH¢1.2 million for the butchers.
When GBC News visited the old abattoir located in the middle of Bolgatanga, the slaughter house was under-lock and key.
Meat sellers at various parts of the Bolgatanga Municipality in solidarity with the butchers have also refused to open their meat shops to serve the public.
Chairman of the Butchers Association, Inusah Samare, said they will only move to the newly constructed abattoir on condition that the Assembly will relocate the animals market to the area.
In an interview with GBC News, the Upper East Regional Chairperson for the Ghana Traditional Caterers Association, Madam Diana Apeyesi, urged the Assembly and the butchers to resolve the issue to prevent residents from consuming unwholesome meat.
When contacted, the Bolgatanga Municipal Chief Executive, Mr. Rex Asanga, said the old abattoir was locked after several attempts to relocate the butchers proved futile.
He expressed surprise at the sudden U-turn by the butchers about relocating to the new abattoir after numerous engagements with executives of the Association.
The old abattoir employs more than 200 butchers and salesmen serving a population of more than one million people.
It is also the only abattoir that supplies meat to households, food vendors and hotels in the Bolga Municipality.
The new abattoir is an ultramodern facility fitted with up to date machines to enhance the work of butchers.
The leadership of the butchers told the news team that actions by the Assembly to lock up the old abattoir to force them to move to the new abattoir have resulted in their strike.
