Sit at home: Onitsha market shut

Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, on Monday ordered the closure of the Onitsha Main Market for one week after traders reportedly failed to heed the state government’s directive to open for business on Mondays despite the sit-at-home order.

Soludo gave the directive during an on-the-spot assessment of the market, accompanied by top government officials and aides.

He warned that the shutdown could be extended if traders continued to stay away, stressing that the move was aimed at restoring normal economic activities and safeguarding residents.

The governor said security agencies had been directed to seal the market to ensure compliance, as he described the traders’ absence as a deliberate defiance of government efforts to reclaim public spaces and normalcy in the state.

According to him, many traders once again kept their shops locked despite assurances of improved security, a situation he said reflected the lingering atmosphere of fear.

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“The government cannot stand by while a few individuals willfully undermine public safety and disregard official directives meant to restore normalcy.

This is plain economic sabotage,” Soludo was quoted as saying.“We are not going to allow this. The closure is a protective measure for law-abiding citizens,” he added.

Soludo further threatened that the market could remain shut for a month if it failed to reopen after the one-week closure.

“You either decide that you are going to trade here or you go elsewhere. I am very serious about this,” he warned.

Our correspondent gathered that the enforcement was carried out amid tight security, as a joint task force comprising the police, army and other agencies was deployed around the market to secure the area.

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The development has again brought to the fore the struggle by authorities in the South-East to end the Monday sit-at-home and restore economic activities across the region.

It had been reported that the Anambra State Government would begin pro-rata salary payments for workers as part of measures to discourage the sit-at-home.

The Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor, had disclosed in Awka that from February 2026, civil servants would be paid based on their attendance on Mondays.