Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah has praised residents of the state for complying with his administration’s cancellation of the Monday sit-at-home and attending to their jobs and businesses.
The governor, on June 2, declared an end to the order and urged schools, markets, and government offices to open on Mondays.
Mbah, who was accompanied by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, visited the Ministry of Lands, Office of the Accountant-General, the Ministry of Finance, Ogbete Market, among others.
The governor put compliance with his directive at 60 per cent.
He said: “We went round to check the level of compliance and to ensure that our people come out for their businesses. The compliance is about 60 per cent. The compliance started today because we issued the statement last Friday. Let’s assume that some people did not get it.
“Our target is to see that the people are productive because they are known for hard work. We cannot have people who have no stake in the economy dictate to us when to go to work and when to sit at home.”
The governor urged the people to go about their duties every Monday, assuring them of their safety.
But a civil servant attributed the low compliance to lack of transportation and fear of attacks by hoodlums.
Also, Leader of proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has directed his followers to end the Monday sit-at-home in the Southeast to prevent criminals from capitalising on it to harm the people.
A statement yesterday by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary Emma Powerful, said the sit-at-home was scrapped when it was discovered that criminals were capitalising on it to harm innocent people.
The statement also said it was wrong for Governor Mbah to associate the sit-at-home with IPOB when the group had suspended it.
It added: “After our leadership initiated the Monday sit-at-home to demand the release of our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, he directed IPOB leadership to stop the sit-at-home to avoid criminals capitalising on that to harm our people.
“Though some Biafrans continued with the order, voluntarily, as our leader predicted, some criminals and infiltrators hijacked it to commit crimes and enforce non-existent Monday sit-at-home.
“It is obvious that Governor Mbah does not know that IPOB had already suspended the sit-at-home, for him to publicly associate IPOB with the order.
“If indeed the governor wants to return normalcy on Mondays, he will have the support of IPOB because those enforcing non-existent Monday sit-at-home are criminals.”
