![Panic in Onitsha: Gunshots ring out as traders, security clash [VIDEO]](https://dailypost.ng/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/onitsha-main-market.jpg "Panic in Onitsha: Gunshots ring out as traders, security clash [VIDEO]")
Pandemonium erupted at Onitsha Main Market on Tuesday as traders clashed with security operatives enforcing the Anambra State Government’s closure of the facility.
Pandemonium broke out at the Onitsha Main Market in Anambra State on Tuesday when traders clashed with security officers enforcing the closure of the market. The shutdown was ordered on Monday by Governor Charles Soludo over the continued observance of the sit-at-home directive by the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, despite what the government described as improved peace and calm across the state.
The governor had questioned why traders continued to keep their shops closed, insisting that economic activities must resume. Earlier on Tuesday, armoured tanks and heavily armed police officers were deployed to the market to enforce the closure, a development that heightened tension in the commercial hub.
Trouble started later in the day when traders stormed the market and attempted to access their shops in defiance of the directive. Their refusal to comply led to a confrontation with security operatives, during which traders were seen fleeing for safety in a viral video as loud gunshots rang out within the market area.
They are firing guns at harmless traders in Onitsha. Are we in a military regime, Papa Ozonna?pic.twitter.com/bHISQN5uP8
— Vivian Ifeoma (@VivianIfeomaOj) January 27, 2026