A member of the House of Representatives from Abia State, Obi Aguocha, has criticised Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Charles Soludo, over the temporary closure of the Onitsha Main Market following traders’ compliance with a Monday sit-at-home directive.

 

Governor Soludo ordered the closure of the market on Monday after visiting the area and observing that many traders had shut their shops in obedience to the sit-at-home order, which is often enforced by a faction of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

 

The governor’s decision triggered protests by aggrieved traders across the state, many of whom on Tuesday openly supported the sit-at-home directive held in honour of detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu.

 

Speaking on Wednesday, Soludo warned that the Anambra State Government would shut down markets and revoke shop ownership from traders who persist in closing their businesses on Mondays, stressing that the administration would no longer tolerate what he described as economically harmful disruptions.

 

According to the governor, frequent market closures deny the state a significant number of productive workdays, undermining employment, income generation and overall economic growth.

 

“It is about our security. Because if you deny 20 per cent of the work there is in a year, you are dampening our prosperity. Jobs that need to be created. Incomes that need to be earned,” Soludo said.

 

He noted that the government had exercised restraint in previous years but would now adopt a tougher stance.

 

“2024, 2025, we were very patient. 2022, 2023, we were busy fighting all of this. In 2026, we are turning on Gear 4,” the governor declared.

 

Soludo further warned that any shop found closed from Monday would be sealed for at least two weeks, with stiffer penalties—including revocation of shop ownership—awaiting defaulters.

 

“If you like holidays, we’ll help you. But going forward, we will come after you and take those shops and give them to people who are ready to use them,” he said, adding that the state had the legal authority to act in the public interest.

 

The governor specifically mentioned major markets such as the main market, the building materials market and the Head Bridge area as being under close surveillance, while also disclosing plans to meet market leaders to reiterate the government’s position.

 

Despite insisting that dialogue remains open, Soludo maintained that reopening of shops was non-negotiable.

 

However, reacting in a statement on Wednesday, Aguocha—who represents Ikwuano/Umuahia North/Umuahia South Federal Constituency—said the governor’s actions had unsettled the fragile peace gradually returning to the Southeast.

 

“Over the last three years, many markets, plazas and shopping centres across the Southeast have gradually returned to normalcy,” Aguocha said.

 

“I have worked tirelessly in this direction, and peace was steadily returning to our rural and commercial trading centres.”

 

He argued that Soludo’s decision had emboldened fear and resistance among traders.

 

“Governor Soludo has unleashed terror on an army of silent agitators who, for so long, had helped to abate the significance of the Monday sit-at-home rituals,” Aguocha said.

 

While acknowledging that the governor’s intention to end sit-at-home protests might be noble, the federal lawmaker described the approach as counterproductive.

 

“These misguided actions have reignited fear, hardened resistance and resurrected old resentments which, if left unchecked, could plunge the region into renewed violence and criminality,” he warned.

 

Aguocha, who chairs the House Committee on Monitoring and Evaluation, also insisted that the Anambra State Government lacks the legal authority to compel private traders to open or close their businesses.

 

“Governor Soludo cannot force, punish or compel private business owners to open or close their shops,” he stated.

 

He further argued that enforcing Monday trading would be inconsistent, noting that similar sanctions are not applied to those who close businesses early on Wednesdays or Fridays for religious observances.

 

“Such decisions fall squarely within the ambit of fundamental rights and are not governed by any state or market-union relationship,” Aguocha said.

 

The disagreement underscores growing tension over how state governments should respond to sit-at-home directives amid ongoing security and economic concerns in the Southeast.