Adopt Dialogues To Manage Sit-At-Home, Experts Advise Soludo

Gov Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State has been advised to hold strategic dialogues with traders of Onitsha Main Market towards ending Monday sit-at-home declared by the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, instead of adopting force.
THE WHISTLER reports that IPOB declared the sit-at-home to demand the release of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, who was then held at the custody of the Department of State Services, Abuja. Kanu was later sentenced to life imprisonment, and currently serving at the Nigerian Correctional Centre, Sokoto.

The advice to Gov Soludo followed his shutting down of Onitsha Main Market following the traders’ continued observance of the order despite its cancellation by the state government.
Mr Edwin Ugwuja, a retired Assistant Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, gave the advice in an exclusive interview with our correspondent in Enugu. Ugwuja was once in-charge of Operations of the corps in Anambra State. He also won the Best Security Support Officer Award in Anambra State in 2017.

He said, “If you push a man to the wall, expect a fight back. IPOB has asked the governor to give them this day, and he has refused. Soludo should let the sleep dog lie. Dialogue, rather than confrontation, is the best way of solving explosive problems. The state cannot be more sensible than the masses. If the people say they want to relax on Mondays, so be it. The constitution allows freedom of movement and association. So far their activities don’t constitute threats to the state, let them be. They can choose Mondays as part of their resting days.”

He advised Soludo to take a cue from the taciturn stance of governors of other regions on their internal security issues. Quoting him, “Other regions do advocate for their militant groups. It is so in the North and the South West. But in our own case, we try to attack our own. By the way, most people in Anambra observe Mondays as working days. Whey then should the governor focus on the traders of Onitsha Main Market alone? There are traders in other places that work. Dialogue is the way out.”

An industrial social worker and security consultant, Dr S.O. Eze, said Soludo might be undermining the economy of the state by not being strategic in his action.

According to him, “If the traders are comfortable not opening for businesses on Mondays, it is their business. With time, they will change the trend. Sit-at-home was being observed in the five-eastern states before, but gradually normalcy is returning. He should have learnt that in Imo, the force to end it failed woefully till date. In Enugu, despite the declaration that it has ended, businesses in the state on Mondays remain skeletal. Some banks, private schools and business owners still shut on Mondays, even in Ogbete Main Market, Enugu.”

He said what Soludo should do is to engage the leadership of the traders in discussions and let them see the presence of security operatives in and around the market.

“He should also know that some Igbo traders now see Mondays as a day to rest. These traders work from Monday to Saturday, and on Sundays when they ought to rest, they hold meetings all through. This means that they don’t rest. But on Mondays, they feel relaxed. Many of them play football and engage in street clearing on Mondays. They see the sit-at-home as an opportunity to enjoy themselves. There is no way Soludo would force them to open, and his efforts will be a huge distraction to his market. It will also de-market his policies.”

A politician and trader, Hon Charles Mgbor, said Soludo might be forcing them to close because he has won his second term in office. “The traders voted for him,” he said. “Some spent money to ensure that he was re-elected. He might also be deceived by pride. He thinks he can rebuild Onitsha Main Market and it will still remain the same? No. Delta and Enugu states might be keenly watching. Gov Peter Mbah can float a parallel market around Oji through Ninth Mile and attract some traders to relocate. The economy of Anambra State is nourished by levies paid by these traders.

“The Delta government can also build similar markets where traders in Onitsha can relocate. Mind you behind the River Niger is Asaba. If Delta explores the opportunity, South-South governments can easily influence the dredging of the river, and make Delta the landing port, thus making Onitsha and Anambra empty. Let Soludo discuss with us, otherwise it will be effort in futility on his part.”

It would be recalled that IPOB had cancelled sit-at-home except days Kanu would appear in court. Nonetheless, many still voluntarily observe the day to show solidarity to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. Kanu’s Special Counsel, Barr Aloy Ejimakor, had in a reaction to the Soludo-Main Market traders’ face-off said sit-at-home would end when Kanu is freed.

He tweeted, “This truth is self-evident: The Monday sit-at-home in Southeast is the best evidence on how unhappy Ndigbo are over the travails of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, and it will persist until he’s freed. And this: The #SitAtHome has reached a point where no Executive Order can end it; but it will end instantly on its own once #MNK is freed.”