Mr Divine Bosson, Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Ho in the Volta region, has refuted allegations leveled against him by members of the Ho Central Market Traders Association.
The traders in a petition, signed by Madam Joyce Norvixoxo, the Market Queen, presented to the Volta Regional Minister, Dr Archibald Yao Letsa, on April 14, 2023, alleged of harassment and double taxation by the Assembly.
The traders also alleged that upon the instruction of the MCE, the market toll and other charges have been increased without recourse to stakeholders’ meeting for any input.
They said the MCE reconstituted the Market Management Committee, on assumption of office without the inclusion of the Market Queen and her executives.
The traders also alleged that Mr Bosson has been using officers of the National Investigations Bureau, Police, and his foot soldiers to harass the Market Queen and some traders.
The traders said these actions of the MCE and his foot soldiers were disrespect and abuse of office, hence the petition for the Minister to intervene and the call for the President to remove him from office.
Reacting to the allegations at a press briefing in Ho, Mr Bosson refuted the allegations, saying they were untrue and that they were just fabrications to tarnish his image.
The MCE said he had never used officers of the National Investigations Bureau, Police, and foot soldiers to harass the Market Queen and other traders or detained them and that those statements were palpable lies.
He said when he assumed office, he realised that there were lots of revenue leakages in the market, so the Assembly formed the market management committee in order to ensure that the leakages were blocked.
The MCE said the measures advanced to check the leakages did not go down well with the beneficiaries of the leakages including Madam Joyce Norvixoxo, thus their continued agitation and allegations that, he has been harassing them.
He said in the past some individuals, who were not ceded revenue collectors, were collecting revenues on behalf of the Assembly, and were pocketing them, so since the Assembly’s current action was a preventive measure against their illegal act “you don’t expect them to be happy.”
The MCE said the Assembly could not continue to rely on the Common Fund to achieve the needed development, so it was imperative to ensure that internal revenues generated by the Assembly were properly collected and used.
Mr Bosson said the core mandate of the Assembly was to bring development and create the necessary environment for businesses to thrive for accelerated advancement of the local economy, therefore his outfit would not do anything to negatively impact businesses in the Municipality.
