The Anambra State Government has announced the termination of the Monday sit-at-home directive in 12 additional markets across the state.The decision was conveyed by Evarist Uba, Special Adviser to Governor Chukwuma Soludo on Trade and Markets, in a circular issued to market leaders on Wednesday. The announcement came shortly after Governor Soludo ordered the closure of the Onitsha Main Market on Tuesday, citing traders’ alleged non-compliance with the directive.
The sit-at-home order, which has often been enforced by a faction of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, has remained a source of tension in the state. The governor’s recent action sparked protests by traders, some of whom on Tuesday openly supported the Monday shutdown in solidarity with IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu.In the circular, Uba instructed traders in the affected markets to resume full business operations on Mondays, warning that failure to comply could lead to market closures. The markets listed include Ochanja Central Market, Bridgehead Market, Ogbaru Main Market, Building Materials Market in Ogidi, Agba-Edo Auto Spare Parts Market in Nnewi, New Auto and Motorcycle Spare Parts Market in Nnewi, Fairly Used Motorcycle Spare Parts Market in Nnewi, New Auto Spare Parts Market Nkpor, Nkpor Main Market, Old Mercedes Benz Spare Parts Dealers Market Nkpor, Old Motor Spare Parts Market Obosi, and Electrical Dealers International Market Obosi.
The directive was addressed to leaders of major markets under the Anambra State Markets Amalgamated Traders Association. Uba instructed market chairpersons to inform traders to open for business on Mondays in line with Governor Soludo’s executive order, which he said is aimed at restoring normal economic activities in the state. He added that government monitoring teams would carry out random inspections, warning that non-compliant markets could be shut for about one month. According to the circular, any shop found closed on Mondays would be sealed, and the shop owner could face legal action, while an entire market may be closed for a month if violations persist.
The sit-at-home practice in the South-East began in August 2021 when IPOB introduced it as a weekly protest to pressure the Federal Government to release its detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who is facing terrorism charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja. Although IPOB later suspended the weekly order, limiting it to days Kanu appeared in court, residents in states such as Enugu, Ebonyi, Imo, Abia and Anambra continued to observe it, largely out of fear.IPOB has repeatedly denied responsibility for the continued enforcement, describing those behind it as criminals exploiting the group’s name. Nevertheless, Simon Ekpa, a Finland-based Biafra agitator, continued to announce sit-at-home orders even after being suspended by the IPOB faction loyal to Kanu.
In July 2023, reports indicated that Kanu, through his lawyer Aloy Ejimakor, instructed Ekpa to halt the action, a directive Ekpa dismissed as false, insisting the sit-at-home would continue unless Kanu personally addressed him in Finland. Efforts by Igbo leaders, including Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah, Anambra State Governor Soludo and the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, to end the practice have recorded limited success. While the sit-at-home has largely faded in Enugu, Abia and Ebonyi states, it continues in Anambra and Imo states. Meanwhile, Kanu was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for terrorism-related offences in November, while Ekpa was sentenced to six years in prison in Finland for similar offences.
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