‘There’s No Law for Flogging’ – Simon Osei-Mensah on Kumasi Mayor’s Threat
Former Ashanti Regional Minister Calls for Legal and Humane Alternatives to Enforce Street Trading Regulations
- Simon Osei-Mensah criticizes Kumasi Mayor's threat to flog traders
- Osei-Mensah emphasizes that Ghanaian law does not support corporal punishment
- Former Minister calls for more humane
Former Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei-Mensah, has strongly condemned recent comments by Kumasi Mayor, Richard Ofori Agyemang Boadi, who threatened to flog traders caught violating the city’s ban on pavement trading.
Boadi had announced a two-week decongestion exercise, starting April 16, 2025, to remove traders from pavements and unauthorized areas within Kumasi’s central business district.
In his statement, Boadi warned that defiant traders would face corporal punishment, even suggesting that a group of men with whips would be deployed to carry out the task.
Responding to these comments, Mr. Osei-Mensah emphasized that such actions have no legal basis in Ghanaian law, which does not permit flogging as a method of enforcement.
Speaking in an interview, he urged the authorities to explore more humane alternatives, such as designating lawful spaces for vendors.
When asked if he would have supported the mayor’s approach during his tenure, Osei-Mensah firmly disagreed, saying, “No,” signaling his strong opposition to the proposed method.
