Uzuegbuna Okagbue perspective on Closure of Main market,a night of dispute with Mazi Odera POg JP.
At the dawn of yesterday, Monday the 26 of January 2026 ,when I was comparing rebuttals and cataloguing stances of Citizens that matters on the Closure of Main market by the Governor ,I read where Uzuegbunam Okagbue known mainly as "Uzu ga atu na Central " , who ran as Deputy Governor Aspirant to Chief Paul Chukwuma on YPP platform, the Party that came in with charge that startled the status quo when they announced courageously to the state that JOY WAS COMING,while the Status quo answered Let there be no Joy.
Uzu supported Gov Soludo with his Full Chest on this matter ,while I have my dissent with ways and means of the annulment.
See his reaction -
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18BR67U1CJ/
It was an evening I called Intellectual pingpong,where many things were debated, knowledge garnered and points raised ,but among other things,I prefer to concentrate on the market closure and UZU ga atu perspective.
Ezennia which is Title name of Uzu ,said that Gov Soludo did an excellent thing by announcing the closure of main market and he said he will support if he will even add a little punitive ,then I disagreed with him and citing security assurance to the Traders and having mind rubbing with executive and leadership of markets ,so that Obi ga Abu Ófú.
I tried to explain insecurity trepidation in minds of traders.
I said Gov Soludo should have mounted security on the market entrances and corridors for reassurance and to serve as moral Booster to the Traders.
Uzu retaliated , while serving Gov Willie Obiano "Akpokue Dike" that they tried that carrot method to lay same thing to rest ,but it failed flat because most of the market leadership are sympathetic to the IPOB cause and ,the market leaders clearly wants to establish a Hub that will box trading economy of the State to strangulation.
He alluded that ,those birds dancing on the city path ,have drummer in the Bush directing the dance steps. He said na Ugwu muta igbaji Ukwu, Agadi Nwanyi amuta arikata Ezue ike.
He said that all 67 markets in ANAMBRA State (this is my first time of knowing we had that large number of trading places in the state ,but I pretended that I know while the argument lingers) is under massive control of Non Anambraians , especially from a state that doesn't have Love for the state nor good plans for survival of the State ,that they have caged the markets and stylishly wanting to frustrate the Internal Generated Revenue ,so they can weaken the growth and resolve of the State and in my mind ,I remembered how sleeper Agents work for Russians In America.
He insisted that what market like main market is doing is to breathe Air of continual insecurities in the state,even when they knew that the state is safe now ,that main market simply wants to serve as bad influence to other markets,he added that deterrent should suffice.
In conclusion ,he said most market leaders are Sympathetic to IPOB and may have preferred to sabotage the state plan to reconvene normalcy which has been bane of Anambara the gateway to South East.
He said if election should be conducted today in a free and fair status for market leadership in the State, that no Aborigine shall win anything, because the domination of markets by Non state actors are alarming.
I still have my angle of agitation,but coming from somebody who served with a Governor as un- announced "Special duties" among other position including Chief Protocol and deputy Chief of Staff,I simply sheath my sword with a feeling of He who argues and resign his stance will have his second chance of arguing on another topic.
I am Last Born Mpa Nnukwu, Nwa Chukwu ku na Aka na ónwu agaghi egbunwu ya, Paracetamol Ndi Politics, Political analyst with feathers, Media Consultant with Onyokometer, Ógba Ntutukó ma obido Igba afa, Mkpisi Ndi Egede na ede with precision. Gentleman with Truth decanter.
I say Good morning to all .
Open letter to please@tag him
ReplyDeleteHis Excellency,
Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, CFR
Executive Governor,
Anambra State
Awka
RE: CONSTITUTIONAL NOTICE — NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW, AND THE RIGHTS OF MARKET TRADERS MUST BE UPHELD
Your Excellency,
This letter is written as a constitutional notice and public record, in response to the continued closure of markets in Anambra State following repeated sit-at-home disruptions and the recent decision to shut markets already traumatised by fear, violence, and economic loss.
Let it be clearly stated at the outset: no individual, no group, and no government authority is above the law. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria remains supreme, and its protection extends most especially to the weak, the voiceless, and the economically vulnerable.
For months, market men and women across Anambra State have suffered intimidation, threats, destruction of goods, loss of income, and psychological trauma arising from unlawful sit-at-home enforcement by non-state actors. During this period, the traders repeatedly looked to the government for protection, enforcement of the law, and the arrest and prosecution of those responsible. That protection did not come. No decisive justice was seen. No effective deterrence was established.
It is therefore deeply troubling that a government which failed to protect these traders from unlawful coercion has now chosen to shut the same markets against the victims themselves. This sequence of actions creates a dangerous constitutional implication: when the state fails to prevent harm and later punishes the harmed, it becomes complicit in the violation.
Your Excellency, markets are not offenders. Traders are not criminals. They did not create insecurity, they did not issue threats, and they did not benefit from the chaos. Closing markets under these circumstances amounts to collective punishment, which is inconsistent with democratic governance and the principles of proportionality and fairness required under the Constitution.
While the state has the power to regulate markets and maintain public order, that power must be exercised lawfully, reasonably, and justifiably in a democratic society. Shutting down livelihoods after failing to provide protection does not restore order; it deepens hardship, fuels resentment, and punishes innocence.
There are better, lawful, and more effective ways forward:
-Meaningful dialogue with market associations and community stakeholders
-Targeted law enforcement against those who enforce fear and violence
-Visible prosecution of offenders to restore confidence
-Clear distinction between peaceful political expression and criminal coercion
Your Excellency, as a Professor and public intellectual, the people expected governance guided by reason, evidence, and sound counsel. Decisions of this magnitude demand deep reflection and advice rooted in constitutionalism, not actions that appear reactionary or symbolic at the expense of the masses.
History is replete with examples where governments chose either repression or reason. The outcomes are always recorded. Policies that punish victims never age well. Policies that protect citizens and uphold the rule of law endure.
We therefore call on you, in the interest of justice, legality, and public confidence, to immediately reopen the markets, restore normal economic activity, and pursue lawful remedies that address insecurity without violating the rights of innocent traders.
The world is watching.
The markets are watching.
And history will judge not intentions, but outcomes.
Please accept this letter as a constitutional appeal for correction, restraint, and lawful leadership.
Yours sincerely,
Chief Mrs. Ifeyinwa Arafat Ezenwa (Ife Nyungwa)
Ijele Nwanyi Igbo Nile
Chairman, Egbuagwu Ezumezu Igbo
Convener, Southeast Patriots Constitutional Reform Initiative
Chairperson, National Council of Women, 2014 national conference representative of market southeast
If a voluntary Monday sit-at-home is described as economic sabotage, then a government-enforced one-week closure of markets is the same sabotage—multiplied, legitimised, and imposed by authority.
ReplyDeleteYou cannot cure economic paralysis by ordering a longer paralysis.
You cannot condemn fear and then govern through fear.
A shutdown does not become wisdom because it carries government approval.
Market traders did not create insecurity.
They were intimidated, threatened, and economically wounded while protection failed.
To now close their markets again is to punish victims for surviving a system that failed them.
When the state fails to protect citizens from unlawful coercion and later shuts down their livelihoods, the line between governance and complicity becomes dangerously thin.
A Professor should understand this basic principle:
Power does not correct error; wisdom does.
Leadership listens, reflects, and chooses dialogue, targeted justice, and protection of the innocent over blanket punishment.
There are better ways—dialogue, intelligence-led enforcement, prosecution of offenders, and reassurance of traders.
Repeating the same economic harm you condemn is not leadership; it is a contradiction.
Anambra deserves reason, not reaction.
Protection, not performance.
Wisdom, not mirrored sabotage.
Ijele nwanyi igbo Nile