Anambra government insists Monday market inspections will continue, warning traders that closed shops risk being shut.
The Anambra State Government has said it will continue inspecting markets every Monday and shutting shops whose owners fail to open for business.
The Commissioner for Information, Dr. Law Mefor, stated this while responding to allegations that the state government shut shops at Onitsha Main Market for failing to open last Monday.
Mefor dismissed the claim, insisting that no shop was sealed at Onitsha Main Market for that reason. He, however, confirmed that enforcement actions took place at Bridgehead Market, Onitsha.
“There is no record of any shop being shut down in Onitsha Main Market because traders did not open on Monday,” he said. “What I know is that some shops were shut at Bridgehead Market, and we will not relent. Every Monday, we will inspect the markets and close any shop whose owner fails to open for business.”
Meanwhile, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) accused the state government of shutting shops at Onitsha Main Market, describing the alleged action as reckless, authoritarian and unjust.
In a statement by its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, IPOB argued that traders’ fears and social realities cannot be erased by government directives or enforcement threats.
“To seal the shops of hardworking traders because they did not open on a particular day is not governance; it is collective punishment,” the group said, likening the action to unlawful eviction.
IPOB urged Governor Chukwuma Soludo to reverse the policy and unseal affected shops, insisting that leadership should be anchored on persuasion, justice and respect for citizens’ rights rather than coercion.