By By Micheal Chukwuebuka
THE Anambra State Government has vowed to continue the inspection of major markets across the state every Monday to ensure that traders open their shops for business.
This was disclosed by the State Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor, in Awka on Tuesday while reacting to allegations by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) that shops were shut in Onitsha Main Market on Monday due to traders’ failure to open for business.
Earlier, IPOB, in a statement made available to journalists in Awka, accused the Soludo-led administration of sealing shops in the main market in fulfilment of the Governor’s warning that shops not opened on Mondays would be shut and reallocated to more serious traders.
The statement, signed by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, partly read:
“Governor Soludo, as an economist and self-professed intellectual, should understand basic human behaviour.
“Societal patterns and public responses do not change at the snap of a finger simply because a governor issues threats from a podium or moves around with a long convoy. People are not automatons. They are citizens with fears, experiences and memories of past injustices.
“To seal the shops of hardworking traders because they did not open on a particular day is not governance; it is collective punishment. Even under a simple landlord-tenant relationship, a landlord cannot lawfully lock out a tenant for not sleeping in the house on a particular day.
“Such an act would amount to unlawful eviction. How then can a governor, who is merely a trustee of public authority, attempt to seal shops belonging to citizens who have committed no crime?” the group queried.
IPOB further noted that leadership is not about issuing threats or demonstrating force against one’s own people, and called on the Governor to immediately reverse the action and unseal all affected shops. It added that governance should be anchored on patience, persuasion, justice, and respect for the rights and dignity of citizens.
However, during a visit to Onitsha Main Market on Monday, it was observed that only shops slated to be affected by the ongoing market renovation—particularly makeshift structures—were marked with red paint.
A trader who spoke to News Express commended Governor Chukwuma Soludo for opening the market for business on Mondays, noting that traders had suffered significant losses in the past.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, she said some traders failed to open their shops because they had become accustomed to staying at home on Mondays.
“To be honest, we are already used to it. We now see Sunday and Monday as rest days. But over time, people will understand the seriousness of the situation and fall in line. This has gone on for a long time and has taken its toll on everyone. It did not start yesterday, so it will take time for people to adjust,” she said.
“Who does not want to come out to do business and make money? We are only pleading with the Governor to save our shops. As you can see, mine has already been marked for removal because of the renovation the government wants to carry out in the market.”
Explaining why her shop was marked, she said it was constructed with containers and was not captured in the market’s master plan.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Information, who spoke in Awka, stressed that there was no record of any shop being shut by the government for failing to open on Monday.
He said: “There is no record of any shop being shut in Onitsha Main Market as a result of not opening for business on Monday.
“What I know is that some shops were shut in Bridgehead Market, Onitsha, and I want to state clearly that we will not relent. Every Monday, we will continue to inspect the markets and shut down any shop whose owner fails to open for business.”
What's your reaction?
