- Agency Report
Economic activities were on Monday stalled in Enugu State as residents of the state observed #freeNnamdikanunow# protests declared by Omoyele Sowore, founder of Sahara Reporters media outfit.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondents who monitored the situation reports that all major markets within Enugu metropolis and the state in general were shut.
They include Aria Market, Ogbete Main Market, Mayor Market, Kenyatta Market, Artisan Market and Coal Camp Spare Parts Markets – were shut down as at 11a.m.
Public and private schools were also shut down, as no pupil were seen going to school while banks, malls, motor parks, shops and other public institutions were shut down for fear of the protest.
The roads within the metropolis were virtually empty as there was no private vehicle moving, while there few commercial vehicles were seen moving without passengers on the roads.
NAN reports that security was beefed up as police and military Armoured Vehicles were mounted at strategic locations in the state capital with surveillance helicopters flying over the state capital.
Speaking on the development, Mr Ikechukwu Aniku, a shop owner in Coal Camp Spare Parts Market, said that some business owners closed their shops in solidarity to the protest.
Aniku appealed to President Bola Tinubu to heed to the protest to release Nnamdi Kanu from detention.
Some parents who spoke to NAN said that they did not send their children to school for fear of being attacked by protesters adding that many schools advised them to stay at home.
“They are safe staying home today; I cannot risk sending my kids to school because of the rumoured protest as no one knows what will happen to them thereafter,” Mrs Nkemdilim Nwadialor said.
Reacting to the development, the Police Command in Enugu State said there was no security challenge in the state concerning the #FreeNnamdiKanuNow Protest.
The Command’s Spokesman, SP Daniel Ndukwe, told NAN in Enugu that the entire state had remained calm and peaceful.
According to Ndukwe, there is no security challenge and there is no protest in the state.
The spokesman said that the command had fully prepared to attend to any adverse situation and made strategic deployments to handle any adverse situation, if any.
They also observed that most areas in the metropolis remained peaceful with a handful of people on the roads and most people remaining within their homes and neighborhoods. NAN