The Anambra State government has said that the rumour making the rounds that markets in the states will close during the festive period is false and baseless. According to a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information & Public Enlightenment in the state, C. Don Adinuba, Anambra markets will operate the way they have always done during the Christmas and New Year period.
“It has come to the knowledge of the Anambra State government that some politicians, working in cahoots with some misguided elements, have been spreading the rumour that the state government has decided to shut down all markets in the state from December 25, 2018, to January 14, 2019,” said the statement.
This rumour, Adinuba stated, is patently false. The date any market will close or reopen for the year, he emphasised, is the prerogative of the traders’ union in a given market.
“The government, therefore, does not meddle in this matter. The Executive Committee of the traders’ union of the Onitsha Main Market, for instance, has decided to shut down the market from 2pm on December 24, 2018, and reopen it on January 3, 2019, to enable members and other stakeholders to participate effectively in the Christmas and New Year celebrations,” said statement. \
This decision, the commissioner explained, has been communicated to the state government. And the state government has, in turn, accepted it and is working round the clock to provide adequate security at the Main Market and other commercial places in Onitsha and beyond.
He explained that the Anambra State government appreciates the enormous cooperation it has received from various groups of traders in the state over the years and will continue to work hand in hand with all the traders and their leaders in the state for the benefit of all the people of Anambra State.
“Let us reiterate for the umpteenth time that markets in Anambra State will continue to operate the way they have always done during the Christmas and New Year period in the state. Any change in the resumption date will be local, that is, confined to every individual market because of its peculiar challenges”.