Security operatives on Tuesday sealed the Onitsha Main Market in Anambra State, enforcing a one-week closure ordered by Governor Chukwuma Soludo after traders defied the government’s directive to end the Monday sit-at-home.

From the early hours, heavily armed personnel drawn from the police, army and other security outfits took positions around the sprawling commercial hub. Armoured Personnel Carriers and patrol vans were used to barricade major entry points, effectively shutting out traders and customers.

The clampdown followed Soludo’s unscheduled visit to the market, where he found most shops locked in compliance not with government orders, but with the sit-at-home directive linked to separatist agitation in the South-East. Angered by the continued paralysis of economic activity, he ordered the market closed for one week, warning that the sanction could be extended to one month if traders failed to obey subsequent directives.

According to the state government, the weekly shutdown of business on Mondays has inflicted severe economic damage, with losses estimated at about N8bn in Anambra alone and nearly N19.6bn across the South-East. Officials argue that the sit-at-home has outlived any original purpose and now amounts to economic sabotage.

“The government cannot stand by while a few individuals willfully undermine public safety and disregard official directives meant to restore normalcy. This is plain economic sabotage. We are not going to allow this,” Soludo said, insisting the closure was a protective measure for law-abiding citizens.

As security teams patrolled the deserted market streets, traders who had arrived hoping to open their shops were left stranded outside the barricades. Many clustered in small groups at street corners, debating the implications of the governor’s hard line and expressing fears over mounting losses.

Eyewitnesses reported moments of tension as some traders attempted to move closer to the locked gates, prompting security personnel to disperse them. The atmosphere turned chaotic at intervals, with people running in different directions to avoid confrontation.

The enforcement also appeared aimed at countering a counter-directive from the Indigenous People of Biafra, which had urged residents and traders to ignore the closure and resume trading, describing Soludo’s action as disappointing and unacceptable. The standoff has deepened the struggle over who ultimately controls daily life and commerce in the region’s largest commercial city.