Kogi State government has ordered temporary closure of major markets and motor parks across seven local government areas in Kogi West senatorial district as part of intensified security operations against terrorists, bandits, and other criminal groups.
Gatekeepers News reports that Kingsley Fanwo, the state’s Commissioner for Information and Communications, said the directive announced on Sunday is meant to disrupt the logistics and supply lines of the criminals, cutting off their access to food, essential goods, and other support networks that may be helping them evade security forces.
Fanwo explained that the closure is being carried out in collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and security agencies deployed in the region, where ongoing clearance operations have been conducted in recent weeks to flush out violent groups.
According to security sources, such measures are used to weaken criminal networks by isolating their communities of support and making it harder for them to restock or regroup during operations.
Affected areas include Oshokoshoko, Jakura, Ogbagbon, Agbaja, Atsawa, Obajana, and other markets and parks in Lokoja LGA; Ike Bunu, Ofere, Oke Offin, Aiyede, Aiyegunle Bunu, and more in Kabba-Bunu LGA; Okoloke, Isanlu Esa, Ogbe, Igbaruku, Omi, and others in Yagba West LGA; and Irunda Ile, Iyeh Ilotin, Gada, and Odogbe in Yagba East LGA.
Markets and parks in Kogi LGA such as the rice market at Adingere and the perishable market at Edeha are also shut, along with multiple trading centres in Mopamuro and Ijumu LGAs.
The state government emphasised that the closures are temporary and will be lifted immediately once the security operations have achieved their objectives and stability is restored in the affected communities.
Local traders and transport workers have expressed concern on social media about disruptions to economic activities, but many have also called for stronger security measures to protect lives and property in the region.
Similar tactics of restricting movement and supplies have been used in other parts of Nigeria to weaken militants and bandit networks, though such actions often also require humanitarian support for affected civilians who depend on open markets for their livelihoods.
