“Yenagoa Boils: Outrage as ‘Culture’ Turns to Looting—Atissa Youths Ransack Market During Monarch’s Burial!”
By Passman Akpos
Yenagoa, Bayelsa State — Tension is mounting across the Atissa Kingdom in Yenagoa following the forced closure of shops and the reported looting of business centres during the burial rites of a deceased monarch—a practice critics now describe as unconstitutional, harmful, and “repugnant to natural justice.”
The controversial tradition—said to be an age-long custom of the Atissa people—mandates a complete shutdown of shops and markets across the kingdom during the funeral rites of a reigning monarch. Despite a government notice advising against any enforced closure, dozens of traders at the popular Swali Market were allegedly compelled to shut their shops. Not long after, the market was reportedly invaded, leading to widespread looting and assault on unlucky passersby.
Eyewitnesses described chaotic scenes as youths believed to be acting on the directives of community leaders broke into locked shops, carting away goods worth millions of naira.
Legal analyst and public commentator Clement Ovokeroye Paul, whose detailed opinion has ignited heated public discourse, strongly condemned the practice, insisting it has no place in a modern constitutional democracy.
According to Paul, while customary law forms an important part of Nigeria’s legal framework, it loses its legitimacy the moment it infringes on constitutional rights or contradicts written law.
> “Any cultural practice injurious to public interest or which violates the rights of individuals is repugnant to natural justice, equity and good conscience,” he noted, citing Section 16(1) of the Bayelsa State High Court Law, which nullifies any customary practice incompatible with written law.
He argued that the Atissa shutdown custom fails the test of legality and morality, describing it as rigid, outdated, and exploitative—one that must be abolished in the interest of public peace and economic survival.
Paul questioned the logic of tying a monarch’s burial rites to forced commercial paralysis:
> “How does the opening of shops diminish the dignity of a deceased monarch? Even more troubling is the celebration of looting under the guise of tradition. This is hypocrisy of the highest order.”
Many traders, especially daily-income earners and contributors to cooperative schemes, lament the financial hardships caused by arbitrary market closures. A middle-aged trader whose neatly packaged goods were looted was seen weeping helplessly—a scene Paul says vividly exposes the cruelty of the practice.
Community members defending the shutdown argue that it is a revered tradition honouring the monarch. But critics insist that in 2025, culture should evolve, not trample on fundamental rights.
> “Customs must adapt to changing realities,” Paul emphasized. “Yenagoa is now a capital city. Any custom that authorises youths to invade and loot shops is not culture—it’s lawlessness dressed in tradition.”
He warned that no individual or traditional leader has the constitutional authority to shut private businesses unless such an action is rooted in written law and justified by public safety, health, or the broader public good.
In a striking conclusion, Paul wrote:
> “Closure of shops and supervised looting in the name of culture does not honour a monarch. It only reveals misplaced priorities and empowers sociopaths. The monarch himself would be disappointed.”
As pressure mounts, civil society groups are calling on the state government to declare the practice illegal, prosecute perpetrators of the recent market invasion, and protect traders from future cultural coercion.
For now, the people of Atissa Kingdom and the wider Yenagoa metropolis wait anxiously to see whether the government will step in—or whether another burial rite could once again plunge the capital city into avoidable chaos.
