Ebonyi traders reject planned protest over Onitsha market closure, back Soludo
Traders from Ebonyi State operating in Anambra State have rejected plans to protest the recent closure of the Onitsha Main Market, declaring support for the policy of Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, aimed at ending the Monday sit-at-home practice.
The traders’ position was made public on Friday, January 2026, in Onitsha, by Ambassador Moses Igwe, President-General of the Ebonyi Town Union in Anambra State. He urged Ebonyi traders to distance themselves from any protest capable of disrupting peace or economic activities in the state.
Igwe said the governor’s directive for markets to open and operate fully on Mondays was in the best interest of traders and the wider Anambra economy, noting that repeated closures had continued to inflict financial losses on business owners.
READ ALSO: IPOB reacts as Soludo shuts Onitsha markets over sit-at-home order
According to him, the sit-at-home practice has crippled commercial activities in the South-East, particularly in Onitsha, one of the region’s major trading hubs, and should be discouraged rather than resisted.
He warned that protests often degenerate into violence, with non-indigenes usually suffering the consequences, stressing that Ebonyi people are peace-loving and law-abiding residents of Anambra State.
Igwe also commended the Soludo administration for what he described as inclusive governance, citing appointments of Ebonyi indigenes into government positions and infrastructural projects, including the construction of a general hospital in Okpoko, which hosts a large Ebonyi population.
READ ALSO: INEC declares Soludo winner of Anambra governorship election
He called on traders across the state to embrace dialogue and resume business on Mondays, rather than engage in actions that could threaten public order and economic stability.
Governor Soludo had earlier ordered the temporary closure of Onitsha Main Market after traders reportedly failed to comply with his directive to reopen the market on Mondays, as part of efforts to abolish the sit-at-home practice and restore full commercial activities in Anambra State.
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