RismadarVoice Reporters
January 27, 2026
Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has condemned the decision by the Anambra State Government to shut down the Onitsha Main Market for one week over traders’ refusal to comply with the abolition of the Monday sit-at-home exercise.
Governor Chukwuma Soludo ordered the closure on Monday during an on-the-spot inspection of the market, after traders and market leaders failed to open for business despite repeated government appeals.
The state government says the continued sit-at-home costs Anambra State about eight billion naira weekly, and the South-East region nearly nineteen-point-six billion naira, while disrupting economic and social activities.
Governor Soludo described the action of the traders as economic sabotage, insisting that the government would not allow a few individuals to undermine public safety and economic recovery. He warned that the market could remain shut for up to one month if compliance is not achieved.
Security agencies, including the police and the army, were deployed to enforce the closure, with barricades mounted around the market.
Reacting, IPOB spokesman, Emma Powerful described the Governor’s action as unacceptable, urging traders to defy the closure, resume business.
He accused the government of intimidating citizens, infringing on their rights.
