By Vincent Ujumadu
Traders in the commercial city of Onitsha, who, apparently, have been taking Professor Chukwuma Soludo, the governor of Anambra State, for granted for years, experienced his authority and might this week, as he decided to end, once and for all, the scandalous Monday sit-at-home in the state. Despite his previous appeals for the traders to open their businesses on Mondays, with assurances of security in all the markets in the state, the traders, particularly those in Onitsha Main Market, which prides itself as the largest market in West Africa, have remained adamant.
Read Also: IPOB declares Monday, Feb 2 sit-at-home as ‘Biafra-Wide Lockdown’
Although there was justification initially to close the markets and remain at home on Mondays following threats by members of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, over the detention of the IPOB leader,Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the governor, since assumption of office on Match 17, 2022, has been appealing to the traders to open their shops as the state is losing millions of naira every Monday, such appeals fell on deaf ears.
But rather than go to the market, many traders use Mondays to gather at pubs to eat and drink. Even when IPOB leaders announced the suspension of the sit at home, the traders said they had become used to resting on Mondays, insisting that government should not direct them when to do their business.
However, Soludo, a renowned Professor of Economics, understood the nativity of the traders. First is that the state is losing so much revenue following the sit at home. Second is that Onitsha is fast losing its reputation as the biggest market in Nigeria where traders come from as far as Cameroon, Benin Republic, Ghana, Togo, among other countries, to buy goods in bulk.
It was, therefore, not surprising when Governor Soludo said enough is enough. Before he took the action to close the Onitsha Main Market for one week in the first instance, government officials had written the leadership of the various markets to explain that the state government would not longer tolerate the Monday sit-at-home.
Soludo warns
After announcing the abolition of the sit at home and closure of Onitsha Main Market for one week, Soludo warned that if the market does not open by Monday next week, he will order for it to be closed for one month, insisting that all markets and shops across the state must remain open every working day, including Mondays, so as to restore the economy of the state.
What, perhaps, baffled the governor was why markets in Anambra State should be closed on Mondays, while those in the other four states in the region now open on Mondays. To him, the issue is no longer about Nnamdi Kanu or Biafra agitation, but pure economic sabotage.
He questioned the selective observance of sit-at-home orders and labelled the continued Monday closures as a deliberate act of economic sabotage against his state.
At a meeting he held with the traders on Thursday, the governor said: “For four years, we engaged with you. We discussed, pleaded, and even held prayer sessions with all the churches in April 2022 to end this. It is now time for more action.
“This sit at home is not linked to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. In 2016/2017, I led 13 Igbo stakeholders to see him , and afterwards addressed a press conference asking for his release, and he was released afterwards.
“I also visited him in DSS custody in March after I assumed office. He does not support the sit-at-home. If it doesn’t happen in Umuahia, his hometown, why Onitsha and Nnewi?”
“The current enforcement of the sit-at-home order has transitioned from a political protest to a criminal enterprise that no longer serves the interest of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“With security largely restored across the state, the continued Monday closures are unjustified. Anambra is one of Nigeria’s largest economies. By closing on Mondays, we are missing out on significant daily business opportunities, especially for the poor who depend on daily income. This is a struggle for the economic soul of our state.”
Economic sabotage
To ascertain that the Monday sit at home is economic sabotage, Soludo asked: “How come the Main Market opened on Mondays during the Yuletide and closed back afterwards? This is a deliberate attempt to redefine the state’s economic calendar.”
According to the governor, those enforcing the sit at home order are largely non-indigenes of Anambra State and warned that “extreme measures” would henceforth be deployed by the government if the defiance persists.
The governor also dismissed security concerns by the traders, saying that apart from the security measures already put in place by his administration, over 150 security officials are currently stationed within the Onitsha Main Market alone.
He promised to build a completely new, world-class trading hub, or embark on a massive modernization project, noting that regardless of the choice, the era of Monday closures is over.
“The government has been patient, but we are now prepared to enforce the law. We already have a new master plan for the Main Market in place since 2023. We are working to secure Anambra’s future and reassure investors that we operate a full five or six-day business week,” he said.
What jolted the traders most was when he reminded them that government holds the authority to revoke land allocations under the Land Use Act if it serves the public interest.
Politicised?
Expectedly, various interest groups and individuals have been feasting on the development.
For instance, Mr. John Nwosu, who contested the governorship of the state on the platform of African Democratic Congress, ADC, in November last year, said Governor Soludo made a hasty decision to shut down Onitsha Main Market, which he said, is the economic lifeline of the Igbo people for five days.
”The sit-at-home phenomenon was largely organic and, by all indications, was gradually losing steam. What it required was sustained dialogue, diplomacy, confidence-building, and strategic engagement—not a sudden action that risked inflaming tensions and punishing innocent traders.
“No state government has administratively ever shut Otu Nkwo Onitsha. Markets are not mere clusters of stalls; they are living institutions that sustain families, communities, and entire regional economies. Decisions affecting them must, therefore, be measured, consultative, and humane.
“When the dust settles, I urge Prof. Soludo to look beyond closures and embrace transformation.
“In today’s world, markets are no longer just commerce open spaces or mere geographical locations. They are vibrant evolving institutions embedded in e-commerce, technology, and global supply chains. Anambra State must position its markets to compete, connect, and thrive in this new economic reality.
“At this critical moment, the government must ensure that no lives or properties are lost. It should deploy back-channel engagement and quiet diplomacy to restore normalcy to the market. This is not the time to prove “I am the Governor.” It is the time to govern wisely.
“Force may compel compliance for a moment, but only dialogue, vision, and development can deliver lasting peace and prosperity”, Nwosu said.
After the weeklong brouhaha, the Chairman of the Onitsha Main Market, Mr. Chijioke Okpalugo has pledged that traders would begin Monday operations in alignment with the Governor’s vision for a “One Anambra.”
He also presented several requests to ensure that the transition is successful, including: a visible and proactive security presence to protect traders and customers.
The traders also urged government to ensure that motor parks are fully operational to bring buyers from outside the state, as well address those who benefit from the closures or facilitate the enforcement of the sit-at-home.
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