KEY POINTS

• Onitsha Main Market trading resumed after IPOB lifted sit-at-home.

• Trader turnout improved, but customer traffic stayed weak.

• Onitsha Main Market trading remains cautious amid security concerns.

Commercial activity in Onitsha Main Market showed tentative signs of recovery on Monday, February 9, 2026, after the Indigenous People of Biafra ordered an end to its weekly Monday sit-at-home across the South-East.

Roughly 70 percent of traders reopened their shops, according to observations, marking the first broad resumption of business after weeks of disruption. The return, however, came with restraint. Customer traffic remained thin, particularly from outside Anambra State, as major access roads into Onitsha stayed largely quiet through the morning.

Onitsha Main Market trading resumes cautiously

IPOB’s directive, issued Sunday by its leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, called for the immediate resumption of normal economic activity. The announcement encouraged some traders to test the waters, though many chose to stay away themselves, sending apprentices locally known as Umu Boi to open shops in their place.

People still acted in a certain way because they were afraid of attacks by hoodlums who had previously enforced the sit-at-home. Traders in many key business areas raised concerns, including Ochanja Central Market, Bridge Head Market, Ogwu Medicine Market, Building Material Market in Ogidi, New Motor Spare Parts Market, and Ngbuka Obosi Motor Spare Parts Market.

Markets surrounding Onitsha Main Market, such as Marine Market, Sokoto Road Market, Ose Okwodu Market, Bida Road, and Biafra Market, also reopened. Even though there were open stalls and apparent stock, not many people came.

Onitsha Main Market trading faces thin demand

Transportation disruptions compounded the slow start. Commercial buses and tricycles, which typically ferry traders and workers into the city, were largely absent until about 10:30 a.m., forcing some traders to abandon the trip and return home.

Justin Igwe, a trader at Marine Market, said he opted to stay away while sending his apprentices instead. “We are still afraid,” he said. “Customers from inside and outside the state are not coming. After the rumours last week, we have to be careful.”

Others expressed cautious optimism. Okwudili Okoye, a trader at Onitsha Main Market, said shops opened but demand lagged. “We are hopeful, but without customers, many will still stay home,” he said. “Mondays need to feel safe again.”

Similar conditions were reported across Onitsha’s suburbs, underscoring persistent skepticism among traders and buyers despite the formal end of the sit-at-home order.