What is even more worrying, they alleged, was the monthly extortion of monies from them by certain persons parading themselves as officials of the Ga East Municipal Assembly, with the promise of giving them space upon completion of the project.

Some of the market women, The Chronicle learnt, were charged between GH¢80 and GH¢120, and subsequently given a green card in the hope that when the project is completed, they would be given space to sell their items.

In other instances, the market women alleged they were issued with a black card for GH¢80 under the same condition.

But an official of the Ga East Assembly, in an interview with The Chronicle, said there was no need for the traders to panic, since their concerns were thought of and addressed before planning the project.

It is not clear when the said project would kickoff and when it would end.

At a press conference to demand for justice for the distressed market women, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate for the Dome-Kwabenya constituency, Adjoa Safo, said though the reconstruction of the market into a modern complex was laudable, it would be suicidal to neglect the market women during the period of the reconstruction exercise.

'There is the need to find an alternative place for these traders and sellers to continue to sell, so that they could also continue to go on with their lives. They need to eat, they need shelter, and they need to pay up bills, including school fees and hospital bills,' she noted.

Adwoa Safo, who could not fathom the distressed condition in which the market women find themselves, also demanded to know the real identity of the person or individual behind the said proposed project.

'As we speak, it is not clear who is actually responsible for the reconstruction. What we hear is that a private person, who is reported to have claimed ownership of the land, is seeking to reconstruct the market to modern day stalls, and then sell it out or rent it on a commercial basis.

'Another report also has it that it is the assembly that is tackling its normal development project, where the market women will have first time opportunity to have access to the market upon completion.

'From these two accounts, a cloud of uncertainty hangs on the neck of everybody, as one is not sure of what is the truth. If we should hold the first account as the truth, then what will be the fate of our mothers who sell in the market? We all know that they cannot afford to rent or buy these stalls on commercial rates, and by that, what we are saying by extension, is ripping them off their daily livelihood permanently. On the other hand, if the second account turns out to be the truth, what will be the modalities for distribution?' she queried.

However, the Public Relations Officer of the Ga East Assembly, Owusu Amofa, in an interview with The Chronicle, said the concerns of the market women were thought of and addressed long before awarding the project to Nextabo Construction Works in August this year.

According to him, 'It is the Assembly that is undertaking the project' with funding from its share of the District Assembly Common Fund.

Under the said project, the Assembly intends building 20 market sheds for the market women, Mr. Amofa told The Chronicle. He explained that to avoid creating inconveniences for the traders during the period of construction, the Assembly decided to build the project in three different phases.

'We are not pulling down the entire place, so the idea of relocation is out,' he added.

Phase 1 of the project, he noted, should have taken off somewhere in September, and was scheduled to be completed in three months time, but due to some difficulties the Assembly encountered from some residents, it was suspended for a while. Those problems, he said, had been resolved, and the 'project would soon takeoff.'

Touching on the issue of extorting money from the traders, Mr. Amofa said the Assembly had a system in place, where revenue collectors from the Assembly collect GH¢8 from the traders for the upkeep of the market, and is therefore not aware of people collecting between GH¢80 to GH¢120 with the promise of giving the traders space to sell, upon completion of the project.