Sit At Home: Nkpor New Parts, Main Market Resume Monday Business In Ernest
Traders at New Auto Spare Parts Market Nkpor and Nkpor Main Relief Market in Idemili North Local Government Area on Monday 9th February 2026 to a great percentage opened for business in compliance to the 'No More Monday Sit at Home' directive of Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State .
Recall that this is the third Monday since the Number one citizen of the state took a drastic measure of closing down the famous Onitsha Main Market for a whole week as punishment for the continued observation of 'Sit at Home' on Mondays which has been adjudged to be inimical to the economy of Anambra State in particular and the South East in general.
Our Information officer was at both markets to monitor the traders level of compliance and saw that unlike previous Mondays in the last five years where the markets and the environs within the Enugu/Onitsha Express flyover use to be deserted like a ghost town, there was a beehive of activities as many traders opened for business.
Speaking at New Auto Spare Parts Market Nkpor, Anambra State Chief of Staff, Mr Ernest Ezeajughi in company of SPAD on Markets, Hon Everest Ubah, Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor and others commended the traders for coming out enmass to open for business on Monday.
"We thank you for responding to the Governor's directive that all markets in Anambra state must open and New parts is among the markets that opened on Monday.
"Main market has forgotten anything like Monday sit at home. The few shops not open here should be made to open, so that new parts can be like Onitsha main market. It will enable people coming from Lagos, Cotoneu, Kano to start coming on Monday for business.
"If you check the number of Mondays we have lost in the last 5 years; 4 Mondays in a month, 52 in a year, 261 in 5 years. Check the gains you make from Tuesday to Saturday and the profits you are losing on Mondays it runs in billions of naira. I don't have a shop here, you traders are the ones losing.
"The Governor's directive is in your own interest. The directive still stands any market that fails to open for business on Monday will be given one or two weeks holiday. So, applause to New parts traders for opening on Monday," Ezeajughi said.
Responding, the New Auto Spare Parts Market Chairman, Chief Stephen Ofoleh (Award) said " on behalf of New parts market, on this 9th February 2026 which the state government monitoring team visited us, we say that it shall be well with you. This market received the directive of the Governor and we have complied up to 80 percent and by God's grace by the end of the month we will comply 100 percent.
Moreso, at the Nkpor Relief Main Market, the Chairman, Chief Paul Okafor (Ugochimereze) assured the State Government that the traders who have complied up to about 50 percent turn up in the Monday market for business would comply 100 percent soonest.
"We thank our Governor for providing security making us to have huge turn up for business unlike the Mondays in previous years. It is about 3pm now, our greatest challenge is that food sellers are yet to comply fully. So, some traders who came out since morning has gone home to eat food. Also, our traders are complaining that there are no customers coming to patronize them but I told them that with time Monday business will normalize like other days," said Okafor.
Ugwunze is of the Anambra State Ministry of Information.