Soludo dares enforcers of sit-at-home, orders full activities from April 4

Police arrest tout, illegal revenue collectors, others

Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, has directed all markets, schools, banks and motor parks in the state to resume normal activities with effect from Monday, April 4, 2022.

Soludo gave the directive during a town-hall meeting at the Dora Akunyili Women Development Centre in Awka, at the weekend, with market leaders and transport unions on the negative effects of the Monday sit-at home order of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in the state.

Consequently, there is apprehension in most parts of the state following the directive that the people should be courageous and go about heir normal businesses on Mondays without fear of being attacked by unknown gunmen.

Insisting that the sit-at-home must end, he cautioned market leaders and relevant authorities to ensure compliance. The governor lamented that the sit-at-home in the South East was gradually sinking the region’s economy, maintaining that the targets of IPOB’s anger were not feeling the impact of the disruptions caused in the region.

He said: “When you boycott activities in Anambra or any other part of the region, normal activities are going on in other parts of the country and the entire South East is losing billions of naira in revenues.

“The sit-at-home on Mondays must end in Anambra. Normal activities must resume in earnest. When normal activities are going on in other places, the person or persons to whom you are directing your anger is not actually feeling what you are doing. So, you are only destroying your home.

“In other parts of the country, school children attend classes for five days, but in the South East, they only go to school for four days. At the end of the day, our children will go into common or unity examinations with other children from other parts of the country.

“Today, many businesses and investors are relocating to Asaba and other places. This is killing our economy and we cannot afford to continue that way.

“Therefore, any market leader, who fails to mobilise traders in his market will be sanctioned. And any trader who fails to open his shop for business every Monday will also face sanction. School heads and operators of financial institutions should also take note,” he noted.

MEANWHILE, the police in Anambra State have arrested some youths for disobeying the state government’s directive to stop touting and collection of illegal levies and fees from motorists and traders.

In a bulletin dated March 27, 2022 titled: Winning The Fight Against Touting, Illegal Revenue Collection And Other Crimes, the Commissioner of Police (CP), Echeng Echeng, said officers and men of the command arrested six suspects and recovered one sub-machine gun (SMG), rifle and ammunition.

He made this known in a statement issued yesterday by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Toochukwu Ikenga and made available to The Guardian.