Markets and financial institutions in Abia State on Tuesday recorded huge crowds as shoppers and customers besieged several markets and financial institutions to perform various commercial and financial transactions 24 hours after they obeyed the sit-at-home orders of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
Our correspondent who monitored the mood of two major towns of Aba, the commercial nerve of the state and Umuahia, the state capital reports that commercial activities began as early as 6am with commercial transporters conveying people to their respective destinations within the cities.
Traders at various markets visited by our correspondent said that they were early to their shops, however, they complained of low patronage.
Business activities, as gathered, started picking up about 10 am when shoppers from other parts of the country started arriving at the markets.
Some of the respondents including Mrs. Chinasa Iwuchukwu and Mrs. Blessing Akpan who spoke at Ariaria and Eziukwu markets respectively said that they were at the markets to replace their stocks, stating that the IPOB sit-at-home could not allow them come to Aba on Monday.
Some customers of various commercial banks who could not withstand the stress of standing for a longtime without being attended to by staffers of various financial institutions resorted to the services of the Point of Sale (POS) operators, while those whose transactions were beyond the services of the POS endured the stress of the banking halls to perform their financial transactions.
Some staffers of commercial banks who spoke anonymously told our correspondent that they were prepared to attend to their customers as they had anticipated the crowd and made adequate arrangements to deal with the situation.
Source: The Nation
