BY PAMELA EBOH, AWKA

Traders in the commercial city of Onitsha have decried the building of iron barricade at the Niger Bridge head by Anambra State governor, Willie Obiano, to curtail the influx of people into the state from the Delta State end.

The barricade which was constructed over the weekend came on the heels of a record of new cases of COVID-19 in the state, leaving the state with nine cases.

Also barricaded is the pedestrian section to ward-off pedestrians who trek into the state daily from doing so.

Traders in the commercial city who spoke to News Express condemned the idea saying that many traders as well as civil servants live in Asaba, Delta and come to the state from there to transact their business and return home.

A trader, Mr. Stephen Okagbue, who spoke during a visit to the city on Monday, said: “I live in Asaba, and my business is in Onitsha. Am I expected to come and live in Onitsha because of Coronavirus? Will government pay for my accommodation and relocation? Whoever advised the governor to do this didn’t advise him well.

“If the gate is locked down by 8pm which is the time for curfew, it’s better and understandable. Things are already bad as it is, the governor should not add to it.

“At first, we thought it was just for the curfew, but you can see it’s day time now and the gate is still locked. The ideal thing to do is to open the gate at the stipulated time and let people come in and do their businesses and before 8pm when the curfew starts they can lock it again.”

Responding to the question the ban on interstate travel, knowing that Anambra and Delta states are different areas, the lace dealer said: “Asaba and Onitsha have become almost synonymous, and cannot be differentiated as different states, even though they are.

On her part, a trader who sells second hand clothes called on Obiano to consider traders before taking certain decisions that may affect their wellbeing.

She said: “The total lockdown has done too much harm to every business in the country and we they are struggling to get by, we don’t need this again. There’s hunger in the land. If I don’t go to the market, how will my family feed?”

A security operative who spoke on condition of anonymity said they receive instructions as to what time of the day to open the gate. He, however, refused to state if the timing is the same on a daily basis.

Efforts to speak to the Commissioner for Transport in Anambra State, Dr. Christian Madubuko, on the time allocated for the opening of the highway could not yield result as he did not pick his calls.

Niger Bridgehead is the gateway into the South East from the western part of the country, and some parts of the north.