Traders are no longer staying away from the Onitsha Main Market on Mondays, as trading has resumed after years of disruption caused by the sit-at-home order.
Monday trading at the market had been largely halted for nearly five years following the sit-at-home directive issued by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
On Monday, about 55 per cent of shops reopened as traders cautiously resumed business under the watch of security operatives.
Buyer turnout was low, and vehicular movement around the market remained light.
The resumption follows fresh engagements between the Anambra State Government and market leadership, as well as the recent closure of the market by the state government to enforce compliance.
The Anambra State Government said the continued enforcement of the Monday sit-at-home order has cost the state economy an estimated ₦8 billion weekly, affecting traders, artisans and residents who depend on daily earnings.
The Commissioner for Information, Dr. Law Mefor, said the government had engaged market leaders and unions for more than two years to end the practice, but the efforts failed despite repeated assurances.
Speaking on Nigeria Info’s Morning Crossfire, Mefor dismissed claims that insecurity justified the suspension of Monday trading, alleging that some individuals enforcing the sit-at-home do not own shops in the market and intimidate traders who attempt to open for business.
He reaffirmed Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s position that there is no sit-at-home in Anambra State and declared that markets across the state, including the Onitsha Main Market, are officially open for business on Mondays.
