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By Iheanyi Chukwudi
Enugu traders and residents who came out for their normal businesses on Monday have said that they were tired of sitting at home, describing the Monday sit-at-home as a plague killing their businesses and household economies.
Complaining to Governor Peter Mbah at their various markets and residential areas within the state capital where he visited as he monitored compliance on the ban on sit-at-home, thanked him for the courage to end the demonic order of non-state actors.
Their lamentation came as Gov. Mbah announced government decision to seal off and revoke shop title of shops not opened when he return next Monday on monitoring.
It was however, a relatively busy day in some of the areas visited by the Governor as most of the major business concerns were on duty.
The Governor who visited Spar Mall, Roban Stores at Bisalla Road, Market Square, Shoprite, Zenith Bank at Ogui Road, Celebrities, Ogbete Market, Garki Awkunanaw Market, Mayor Market, Abakpa Market, and the State Secretariat, commended the level of compliance in most of the places.
He however, warned that traders, who continue to sit at home from Monday, July 24, would lose their shops to serious-minded businessmen.
Assuring them that adequate security had been provided, Mbah noted that there had not been any incident of attack since the ban on sit-at-home in June.
Interacting with business owners, shoppers, traders as well as civil servants at the State Secretariat, the Governor said “It should never be heard that we were cowed because of the threat of violence by these criminals”, noting that “the poverty that will befall us for sitting at home will kill us even faster”.
“We are losing over N10bn every Monday that we sit at home. Enough is enough. This foolishness must end and it must end now. We cannot be marginalising ourselves and still complain of marginalisation."
“So, we must say no to sit-at-home because what it means is that we are destroying our employment, our economy, and our GDP. We must erase it from our memories. We should see it as our shameful past, which we do not want to remember. We must put it behind us and forge ahead, ensuring that we work every working day of the week.”
Addressing traders at Ogbete, Garki, and other markets, he said, “But you know, there are also consequences for not heeding our orders. Going forward, I want to put you on notice. I will go around the state again on Monday next week.
We are going to come with the Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority to put a seal on any shop that is found locked on Monday because of the illegal sit-at-home. We will take it that you are not ready to do business.
“We are going to revoke your license to operate. We will revoke your shop title and reallocate it to someone else, who is ready to do business. This is something we must enforce with effect from Monday next week.”
In their responses to the Governor, the market leaders and business owners assured him that they were now ready for full compliance, saying they were already sick and tired of the Monday-sit-at home.
At Ogbete, the President of Enugu State Amalgamated Traders Association, Stephen Aniagu, assured the governor that they had already agreed to commence full business, saying all shops would be open from next Monday, same assurance was also given by the leader at Abakpa market, Bernard Anike.
On his side, a development economist, Richard Emeka Ezeh, while lamenting on the high cost of sit-at-home commended Mbah’s determined efforts to bring it to an end.
He said“I’m surprised to see the governor here. I like it that he is going round to sensitise the people on why they should come out.
“Employers of labour were losing so much money to sit-at-home.
The economy cannot grow when we are losing N10 billion every Monday. As a development economist, I know that the private sector drives every economy, but the private sector cannot thrive in a place where people sit at home.”
Likewise on Monday, public and private schools monitored in Enugu were open, most of them for the first time on a Monday since the beginning of sit-at-home.
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