Traders protesting the temporary closure of the popular Onitsha Main Market, yesterday, blocked the ever-busy Niger Bridge that connects Asaba and other parts of Delta State with Anambra State and other South-East states.
This came as Anambra State government of those that must open for business on Mondays or face one-month total closure.
This is even as Igbo Community Association, Abuja, has called on Governor Chukwuma Soludo to reopen the Onitsha main market to avoid the escalation of protest by the traders in the market, noting that the people of Onitsha were already taking to the streets in protest and the situation fast escalating.
Yesterday,the aggrieved traders’ action for hours, disrupted vehicular and human movements from Asaba, Delta State, to Anambra State, as travellers stayed in the gridlock that resulted from it for hours.
The gridlock on the ever-busy Niger Bridge also led to some travellers returning to Asaba for fear of possible attack if the protest turns violent.
However, the traders conducted themselves well while chanting “Soludo show us the law”, saying “we must trade on Mondays,” “We have the right to trade any day we like, government didn’t fund us,” “Soludo, you are infringing on our rights. Stop now,” “Why the selective closure of the market in Onitsha?” among others.
When Vanguard visited Niger Bridge head, the protesting traders said they decided to troop to the Niger Bridge head to occupy it, so the Federal Government would be informed about the injustice done to them and to remind it that the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu would make the return to markets on Monday very difficult.
Spokesman of the protesting traders, Mr Sunday Okoli, said as far as Nnamdi Kanu was in detention, trading activities on Mondays will be extremely difficult to achieve.
He said when the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, cancelled the Monday weekly sit-at-home and repeatedly made publications disassociating itself from the miscreants enforcing it, the traders in the state expected governments at the state and local government levels to act by encouraging security agents to provide security in the markets for trades to go back to business on Mondays.
“But they didn’t do that and now that they are used to sitting-at-home on Mondays, the government is trying to force us to go back to markets without providing security for our lives and goods,” he said.
According to them, going back to markets on Mondays now is not in their plans unless air tight security will be provided for them.
“We are ashamed of the Army and the Police that are now being used by the governor to prevent us from going into our markets to trade. We expected them before now to give us security in the markets when the hoodlums were attacking us when we attempted to trade on Mondays, but they were not there for us.”
The traders marched from New Market Road, Onitsha, Venn road to Kirk road then to Niger Street to Niger Bridge Head, where they blocked the bridge.
The affected markets added to the list include Ochanja Central Market, Bridgehead Market, Ogbaru Main Market, Building Materials Market Ogidi, Agba-Edo Auto Spare Parts Market Nnewi, New Auto and Motorcycle Spare Parts Market Nnewi, Fairly Used Motorcycle Spare Parts Market Nnewi, New Auto Spare Parts Market Nkpor, Nkpor Main Market, Old Mercedes Benz Spare Parts Dealers Market Nkpor, Old Motor Spare Parts Market Obosi, and Electrical Dealers International Market, Obosi.
President General and Secretary General of Igbo Community Association, Ikenna Ellis-Ezenekwe and Mazi Emmanuel Onah, respectively, in a statement, said the association worried that if the market is not reopened immediately, the protest may lead to a total breakdown of law and order, which may lead to loss of lives and property in the city.
The statement read: “We are worried that if the markets are not reopened immediately, the protest may lead to a breakdown in security, resulting in injury to innocent citizens and damage to property.
He said when the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, cancelled the Monday weekly sit-at-home and repeatedly made publications disassociating itself from the miscreants enforcing it, the traders in the state expected governments at the state and local government levels to act by encouraging security agents to provide security in the markets for trades to go back to business on Mondays.
“But they didn’t do that and now that they are used to sitting-at-home on Mondays, the government is trying to force us to go back to markets without providing security for our lives and goods,” he said.
According to them, going back to markets on Mondays now is not in their plans unless air tight security will be provided for them.
“We are ashamed of the Army and the Police that are now being used by the governor to prevent us from going into our markets to trade. We expected them before now to give us security in the markets when the hoodlums were attacking us when we attempted to trade on Mondays, but they were not there for us.”
The traders marched from New Market Road, Onitsha, Venn road to Kirk road then to Niger Street to Niger Bridge Head, where they blocked the bridge.
The affected markets added to the list include Ochanja Central Market, Bridgehead Market, Ogbaru Main Market, Building Materials Market Ogidi, Agba-Edo Auto Spare Parts Market Nnewi, New Auto and Motorcycle Spare Parts Market Nnewi, Fairly Used Motorcycle Spare Parts Market Nnewi, New Auto Spare Parts Market Nkpor, Nkpor Main Market, Old Mercedes Benz Spare Parts Dealers Market Nkpor, Old Motor Spare Parts Market Obosi, and Electrical Dealers International Market, Obosi.
President General and Secretary General of Igbo Community Association, Ikenna Ellis-Ezenekwe and Mazi Emmanuel Onah, respectively, in a statement, said the association worried that if the market is not reopened immediately, the protest may lead to a total breakdown of law and order, which may lead to loss of lives and property in the city.
The statement read: “We are worried that if the markets are not reopened immediately, the protest may lead to a breakdown in security, resulting in injury to innocent citizens and damage to property.
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