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Sit-at-home grounds Southeast economy - WATCHTOWER MEDIA
Private and public activities in the Southeast were near zero yesterday as residents stayed indoors. This was the first of two two-day sit-at-home ordered by non-state actors.
From Onitsha in Anambra State to Aba in Abia State and Abakaliki in Ebonyi State to Orlu in Imo State, the streets were devoid of human and vehicular movements.
Markets, public and private offices as well as schools were deserted despite the visible presence of security agents on major roads, especially in the state capitals.
The latest sit-at-home was neither ordered by the Mazi Nnamdi Kanu-led Independent People of Biafra(IPOB) nor Finland-based Simon Ekpa, but spurred by a viral video by some pro-separatist groups in the Southeast.
IPOB and Ekpa are known to be issuers of Monday sit-at-home directives that have since 2002 not only led to loss of lives but impacted negatively on the zone’s economy.
In four of the five states covered by The Nation yesterday, no violence or killing was recorded.
Although residents of Umuahia, the state capital had in the past been partially observing sit-at-home, yesterday’s was different as they avoided the streets completely.
Only a few residents who had urgent needs were seen trekking to their destinations.
In Aba, the state’s commercial nerve centre, traders avoided their shops and markets because of fear of being attacked.
Banks and private-owned business operators had their doors firmly locked.
Security agencies had in the early hours of yesterday carried a joint show of force in Aba and other cities in the state.
Streets in the state’s economic hubs–Onitsha and Nnewi– lost their valves with residents also not venturing out of their homes.
There was, however, partial compliance with the order in Awka.
The state secretariat was virtually empty as only a few civil servants who live close, by reported for work.
Other residents seen outside attributed their actions to the heavy presence of security agents.
An Nnewi resident told The Nation that they opted to remain indoors because ‘’nobody wants to lose his life “
A trader in Onitsha said: “ I will not allow anyone to use me as a sacrifice. Those people dishing orders that we should go about our activities without fear cannot work along the roads without security people around them.
“Have you seen any of the banks or those big shops opening on Mondays since the announcement?’’
He called on the ‘’government and security agencies to leave us alone and face their fronts.’’
Markets, financial institutions, petrol stations, and public enterprises in Abakaliki metropolis remained closed in the early hours of the day.
Major roads and streets in the capital city were virtually free of human and vehicular traffic.
A banker, who did not give his name, said he was in the office with his colleagues but was advised by the management not to open for business.
A resident, James Ike, urged the government to do everything within its power to end the sit-at-home orders
He said the directives by non-state actors were affecting the economy of the Southeast adversely.
Security agents were also seen patrolling the streets in the state capital to forestall any breach of the peace.
Markets, and other private outfits in Owerri, Orlu, and Okigwe did not open but government offices did with some civil servants on duty.
Busy streets like Douglas, Bank and Wetheral roads, were eerily empty, with some areas converted by youths to temporary football fields.
A trader at Owerri Main Market, who lamented that the ‘’sit-at-home order disrupted our business,’’ prayed for ‘’the issues at stake to be resolved soon.”
At the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) and Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, some workers who reported in the morning left hurriedly for fear of the unknown.
But the state government said civil servants reported for work
“Government workers are in their offices today (yesterday) and the police and other security agencies are providing security for the people,” said Information, Strategy and Public Orientation Commissioner Declan Emelumba.
However, the situation on the ground was different as many government offices were reportedly empty.
Security agencies, however, deployed personnel to maintain law and order. Their vehicles were seen patrolling major roads and flashpoints in the city.
