Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Gabriel Osa
Onitsha, Anambra State — Traders in Onitsha Main Market have rejected the Anambra State Government’s position and continue to observe the Monday sit-at-home directive, insisting that their protest will only end with the release of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader Nnamdi Kanu. The sustained shutdown of commercial activity has prompted a standoff between market stakeholders, state authorities and IPOB supporters.
The Anambra State Government under Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo had earlier ordered the temporary closure of the Onitsha Main Market for one week after traders again stayed away from their businesses on a Monday in compliance with the sit-at-home order typically associated with IPOB’s civil disobedience campaign. Soludo viewed the continued observance of the shutdown as harmful to the region’s economy and contrary to government directives to resume normal trade.
In response to ongoing pressure and economic disruption, Soludo announced that the closure order had lapsed and directed traders to reopen the market and resume business as usual on Monday, February 2, 2026. The state government also reiterated that the Monday sit-at-home order is no longer recognised by the state, adding that civil servants and teachers are expected to work or face non-payment under the pro-rata salary system. Authorities assured residents of adequate security at the market as trading resumes.
Despite the reopening order, many traders continued to close their shops on Monday, signalling deference to the IPOB-linked sit-at-home directive. This parallel compliance reflects broader political and socio-economic tensions, with traders and sympathisers asserting that the shutdown is a peaceful expression of protest against the detention of Nnamdi Kanu. A faction of the pro-Biafra movement has declared sit-at-home and solidarity lockdowns across parts of the South-East in support of traders and to amplify pressure for Kanu’s release.
The repeated Monday closures have had a significant impact on commerce in Onitsha, a major economic hub in the South-East, with some reports indicating drivers from neighbouring states avoided routes into Anambra in anticipation of shutdown enforcement. Some traders took part in street protests, chanting and demonstrating their resolve against the state government’s attempt to force normal business operations.
Governor Soludo’s government has characterised the sit-at-home observance as exploitation of civil disobedience for criminal ends and an impediment to economic life in the region. Supporters of the governor’s stance have urged residents to disregard the sit-at-home directive and embrace regular business activities, warning that prolonged closures harm livelihoods. An APGA chieftain publicly backed Soludo’s move to end the Monday shutdown, citing economic losses and asserting that those invoking Nnamdi Kanu’s name to justify the closures are misleading the public.
The discord between the state government and traders illustrates the deepening contest over economic autonomy, civil protest and political expression in the South-East ahead of wider national political developments. As traders maintain the sit-at-home practice in pursuit of their stated demand — the immediate release of Nnamdi Kanu — authorities face the challenge of balancing enforcement of law and order with the preservation of economic activity in one of Nigeria’s busiest commercial centres.
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