Anambra State governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo,  has escalated the enforcement of his earlier directive to traders at Onitsha Main Market, warning that shops of defiant traders will be forcibly closed if they continue ignoring government orders to open for business on Mondays.

The development follows Soludo’s initial announcement on Monday, when he ordered a one-week closure of the market over traders’ persistent defiance of the state’s anti-Monday sit-at-home directive.

Addressing the situation during an on-the-spot inspection of the market this afternoon, the governor said past efforts to persuade traders had failed, and the government is now moving to a more assertive approach.

“If you deny 20% of workdays in a year, you are undermining our prosperity, job creation, and the economy. In 2022 and 2023, we fought it. In 2024 and 2025, we pleaded. But in 2026, we are shifting to gear 4, no backing down. Anyone who closes their shop, we will help them close it for one week. From next week, if they refuse to open by Monday, I will shut down the market and take over some of them,” Soludo declared.

He described traders’ repeated Monday closures as deliberate economic sabotage, stressing that the closure ordered on Monday was a protective measure for law-abiding citizens.

Security personnel, including the police, army, and other agencies, have been deployed to enforce the closure and maintain order. Soludo warned that non-compliant traders after the one-week shutdown risk a longer closure of up to one month.

The measure is part of the state government’s ongoing effort to end Monday sit-at-home practices, which have continuously disrupted economic activities across the South-East.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) on Wednesday constituted a ”50-Member Wise Men and Women Policy and Manifesto Committee” chaired by  Odigie Oyegun.

Bolaji Abdullahi, the party’s national publicity secretary, in a statement, said the constitution of the Policy and Manifesto Committee, followed the approval by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party, led by David Mark.

The party revealed that this is in line with the party’s commitment to building a credible, people-centred, and forward-looking policy framework for national governance.

The party had earlier constituted the Committees to review membership register and draft a new Constitution for the party

According to the statement, “The Policy and Manifesto Committee brings together a distinguished group of Nigerians drawn from diverse backgrounds, including former public office holders, academics, technocrats, policy experts, civil society leaders, and professionals.

The Nigeria Police Force has uncovered a ₦7.7 billion cyber-enabled telecommunications fraud and arrested six suspects linked to the illegal diversion of airtime and data resources belonging to a telecom company.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Force Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Abuja, Benjamin Hundeyin, the police said the operation was carried out by the National Cybercrime Centre following a petition from the affected company.

According to the statement, the company reported “suspicious and unauthorised activities within its billing and payments infrastructure.”

The police said investigations revealed that “internal staff login credentials had been compromised, granting threat actors unlawful access to core systems.”

The syndicate responsible for the illegal diversion of a telecommunications company’s airtime and data resources, resulting in “an estimated financial loss of over ₦7.7 billion.”

Following weeks of planning, the police said “coordinated enforcement operations were executed in October 2025 in Kano and Katsina States, with a follow-up arrest in the Federal Capital Territory.”

The statement added that six suspects were arrested during the operation.

“They include Ahmad Bala, Karibu Mohammed Shehu, Umar Habib, Obinna Ananaba, Ibrahim Shehu, and Masa’ud Sa’ad,” the police said.

The Punch