Business Grounds In Aba As Residents Observe Sit-At-Home

Residents of Aba, the commercial nerve of Abia State and their Umuahia counterparts on Monday, August 16, 2021 joined their counterparts in the southeast to stay away from their offices, business premises and shops.

Staff of various banks, local government workers and those in private firms also stayed away from their work places.

Litigation lawyers who were in various courts for their various cases and other court related matters were left disappointed as the court staff, Magistrates, Judges were not in sight.

This is even as the leadership of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) announced that the earlier announced sit-at-home order which was planned to hold every Monday, will no longer hold as announced. But to hold any day that their leader, Nnamdi Kanu would be arraigned in court.

Many who spoke to infonet9ja.com said that the calling off of the sit-at-home came at the time when the people had been warned against opening their shops on Monday, on Friday by group of boys believed to be IPOB members.

Again, they said that they were confused about who to believe when the information about the cancellation of the weekly sit-at-home order trickled into the public space.

The spokesman of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Comrade Emma Powerful canceling the planned weekly “ghost Monday” in solidarity with their leader who has been in detention facility of the Department of the State Security (DSS) after he (Kanu) was repatriated from Kenya.

While the “voluntary” sit-at-home (as described by some residents of Aba and Umuahia) was peaceful in some parts of Aba, it was not the same situation in some parts of Aba North and South LGA as some people believed to be IPOB members at Faulks road by Sameck junction in a bid to enforce the cancelled sit-at-home order, smashed car and tricycle windscreens, setting ablaze one of the tricycles in the process.

Another tricycle was set ablaze around Omuma area by the same group of persons who also forced shop owners to scamper for safety.

A combined team of RRS (Rapid Response Squad) police officers and soldiers reportedly clashed with another group of people who cashed into the Monday situation to be terrorizing motorists and other road users at Ngwa road by Asa road junction in Aba South LGA.

At the Ohanku by Ihieorji axis of Aba, some unscrupulous elements took advantage of the deplorable nature of the road to unleash their wicked act on residents and road users, especially those using motorcycle and cars.