By: Franklin ASARE-DONKOH
The ultramodern Kejetia Market located in the Ashanti region capital Kumasi, has been disconnected from the national power grid for the second time due to a Ghc70 million debt owed to the electricity distribution company, Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).
Managers of the facility say the market has been relying on an alternative power plant as its energy source since the disconnection occurred about a week ago,
However, traders have expressed concerns about the negative impact of the power outage on the market’s operations.
According to the traders, business has been affected as patrons are not coming to the facility to patronise their wares ever since power was disconnected to this facility.
“We were here on Saturday and Friday and couldn’t make any sales. When the lights come on for some time, it goes off again because we rely on the generator set. It has been difficult for us,” a trader said.
Meanwhile, the President of the Federation of Kumasi Traders, Nana Akwasi Prempeh, explained that the structure of the market makes it challenging for customers to navigate in the dark, affecting both their comfort and perception of the market’s security.
“The structure of the market is such that any time the light goes off, it takes about 30–50 minutes before the gent set is turned on, and people who enter the market to buy our things complain.
Some feel the place is too dark, some feel the place isn’t secure, and others also feel that they cannot get the right things or identify the exact commodity that they want to buy.
So they don’t feel comfortable entering our market to buy something. In the long run, it affects us the traders,” he explained.
Nana Akwasi Prempeh added that the market’s management has had to resort to using a power plant as an alternative source, but it comes at a higher cost and with technical issues that make the power supply unsustainable.
“Currently, the management engaged the leadership of the traders’ union that we cannot let the market be in darkness, so we had to rely on the plant. But it is also coming at a higher cost. Every six hours, we have to use four and a half barrels of diesel,” he hinted
