•Threatens revocation, says all Anambra markets must open on Mondays

By CHIMEZIE ANASO

Gov. Chukwuma Soludo has threatened to revoke shops and properties in Onitsha Main Market and other markets over continued Monday closures.

Soludo spoke on Wednesday at a media conference on his administration’s determination to end the sit-at-home culture in Anambra.

He said there was “no going back”, stressing that markets must open on Mondays in line with government directives.

According to him, Onitsha Main Market was shut because traders defied earlier warnings despite assurances of safety.

The governor said similar action would be taken against any market that failed to operate on Mondays.

Soludo described the continued closures as “pure sabotage” against the state’s economy and collective progress.

He questioned why traders operated daily, including Sundays, during the yuletide but closed shops afterwards.

Soludo said the government would engage leaders of market associations to restate operational rules across the state.

He described the move to reclaim Mondays as a fight to “save Anambra’s economy and our children’s future”.

The governor assured residents that Anambra was secure, insisting sit-at-home ended about two years ago.

He said anyone enforcing Monday closures was a saboteur with criminal intent to keep the state backward.

Soludo noted that IPOB had publicly denounced sit-at-home, saying people previously complied under coercion.

He recalled visiting IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu in DSS custody, saying Kanu expressed displeasure with sit-at-home.

“On Jan. 26, everywhere was open except Main Market, a government-owned facility,” Soludo said.

He added that the market was shut for the week and would remain closed until compliance was assured.

“The Main Market belongs to the state government; most occupants there are illegal,” the governor said.

Soludo warned that allocations could be cancelled and the facility repurposed if defiance persisted.

He dismissed calls to cite enabling laws, saying appropriate legal backing was already “in the making”.

The governor said Anambra enjoyed one of its safest Christmas periods, with markets open throughout the yuletide.

He described Monday closures as “plain laziness”, insisting Anambra could not invent a new economic calendar.

Soludo said his administration engaged stakeholders, offered amnesty and created a bureau for missing persons.

He said over 15,300 youths benefited from skills programmes aimed at rehabilitating misguided young people.

Soludo said Anambra was open for business Monday to Saturday, while public service runs Monday to Friday.

He warned that workers absent on Mondays would receive only 80 per cent of their salaries.

“We will sustain a massive onslaught on criminal elements and their sponsors,” the governor added. (NAN)