Sit-At-Home: Pandemonium Ensues As Gunmen Storm Enugu Ogbete Market

There was pandemonium at Enugu Ogbete Market Wednesday morning as  gunmen launched an attack and firing shots indiscriminately.

Consequently, market traders and commuters fled in all directions to seek safety bringing business activities to abrupt halt.

The gunmen were said to be enforcing the one week Sit-At-Home directive by the Finland based Biafran agitator, Simon Ekpa, as protest against the arrest and continued detention of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu by the Federal Government.

OPTIMUM TIMES recalls that the Enugu State Government had on Tuesday threatened to shutdown permanently any market, school or business premises complying with the Sit-At-Home order, advising that residents should disregard the order.

However, according to reports, “This morning, as people had resumed their normal activities in businesses, shops, and offices, the gunmen entered the southern end of Ogbete Main Market, firing shots as they moved from Mgbemena to Zik Avenue. They continued shooting for a prolonged period at Zik Avenue before driving into nearby Amokwe Street and disappearing.”

Witnesses reported that the intense shooting prompted motorists and individuals in the area to seek cover urgently. The news quickly spread throughout the city and suburbs, leading to a halt in all activities. Filling stations, banks, shops, markets, garages, offices, and schools closed down for the day.

Subsequently, soldiers and police officers with armoured vehicles began patrolling the area to restore confidence and maintain security. This development coincides with the ongoing First School Leaving Certificate exams, potentially impacting students and teachers, reports further said.