Awka, Anambra State — The Anambra State House of Assembly has thrown its full weight behind the state government’s directive ordering traders at the Onitsha Main Market to abandon the weekly Monday sit-at-home, warning that the exercise is inflicting massive economic damage on the state.
Lawmakers said Anambra loses an estimated ₦19.6 billion every Monday as a result of the sit-at-home order, which they described as unsustainable and economically destructive.
During plenary on Tuesday in Awka, the House also endorsed Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s decision to shut down the Onitsha Main Market for one week following traders’ failure to comply with the directive to resume business activities on Mondays.
Moving the motion, the Minority Leader, Mr. Johnbosco Akaegbobi, representing Nnewi South I Constituency, urged residents to immediately discontinue the sit-at-home practice. He noted that the order, originally introduced in 2021 by the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) to protest the detention of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has since become a fear-driven weekly routine across the South-East.
Akaegbobi revealed that the South-East region collectively loses about ₦88.08 billion every Monday, with the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector accounting for nearly 60 per cent of the losses. He added that micro-businesses alone lose an estimated ₦4.6 trillion annually, while transporters lose between ₦10 billion and ₦13 billion daily.
According to him, the enforced shutdown has also resulted in a 20 per cent decline in effective annual workdays and a 35 per cent drop in business productivity across public and labour sectors.
Seconding the motion, the Deputy Speaker, Mr. Chuma Okoye, said the government’s action was taken in the interest of the common good and should not be viewed as high-handed. He lamented that many residents now treat Mondays as an extension of the weekend, weakening the state’s economic output.
Similarly, Mr. Golden Ilo, representing Ihiala II Constituency, urged traders and residents to support the government’s efforts, describing compliance as vital for economic recovery.
Following deliberations, the House resolved that the Monday sit-at-home directive should cease immediately.
The Speaker, Mr. Somtochukwu Udeze, called on market leaders, religious institutions, schools, civil servants, transporters, and business owners to resume full economic activities across the state without delay.
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