By Nchetachi Chukwuajah
Residents protesting the one-week closure of the Onitsha Main Market following a directive by the Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, have blocked the Onitsha Head Bridge.
A video that trended on social media showed protesters barricading entrances to the bridge, chanting, “No way in, no way out. Onitsha to Asaba blocked. Standstill!”
From the video, many residents were seen standing firm while some ran as the demonstration intensified.
The Onitsha Head Bridge links Anambra with Delta State, and the protest disrupted movement in and out of the state.
The protest comes after Soludo ordered a one-week closure of the Onitsha Main Market on Monday, January 26, over defiance to a government directive for the market to open on Mondays and not observe the longstanding Monday sit-at-home order by non-state actors.
Traders at the market took to the streets on Tuesday, January 27, to protest the closure, carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs, including expressions of support for the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
Some of the protesting traders who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday called for adequate security measures to enable them to adhere strictly to the governor’s directive on the Monday sit-at-home.
According to them, the closure of the market was overbearing and undemocratic, adding that the action was insensitive to the concerns of traders and residents, as adequate security was yet to be achieved in the state.
They also questioned whether the government could restore the lives of those who might lose their lives in the process of returning to business.
