AWKA – In a significant escalation of his policy to restore economic normalcy, Anambra State Governor, Professor Charles Soludo, has ordered 12 additional major markets to abolish the Monday sit-at-home practice and resume full business activities.
The directive, issued in a circular signed by the Special Adviser on Trade and Markets, Chief Evarist Uba, comes just days after the government shut down the Onitsha Main Market for one week over the same issue. The newly listed markets include the large Ochanja Central Market, Bridgehead Market, and Ogbaru Main Market, alongside major auto parts markets in Nnewi, Nkpor, and Obosi.
The circular explicitly warns that government monitoring teams will conduct random inspections. “Any shop that is not open will be sealed by government officials… Any market found not complying will be closed for one month,” the statement read.
Governor Soludo has scheduled a meeting with all market leaders on Thursday, January 29, at the International Convention Centre in Awka to discuss the policy. The government clarified that the meeting was requested by some leaders appealing for the reopening of the sealed Onitsha Main Market, not as a response to Tuesday’s protest where traders clashed with security.
This bold move expands the state’s direct confrontation with the illegal sit-at-home order, aiming to dismantle its economic stranglehold across the state’s commercial nerve centers.
Read more on the initial crackdown: Gunshots Fired at Onitsha Market as Soludo Enforces Closure
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Disclaimer: This report details a new government policy directive. The enforcement and outcomes, including potential market closures and trader reactions, are developing situations.
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