The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has cautioned Anambra State Governor, Charles Soludo, against pressuring citizens to defy the Monday sit-at-home protest. In a statement released by spokesperson Emma Powerful, IPOB emphasized that the protest is a peaceful and lawful act of solidarity with detained leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
The group warned that any attempt by Soludo to deploy task forces to force shops open would amount to provocation and oppression. The statement reads in part:
“Anambra is not a military barracks. Citizens are not tenants in their own land. No governor has the right to compel free individuals to operate their businesses or move against their will, especially when the action is a peaceful, non-violent protest.”
IPOB stressed that civil disobedience is a fundamental democratic principle, and citizens voluntarily staying home in protest of Kanu’s detention is their lawful right. The statement added that punishing such peaceful action is tantamount to declaring war on the dignity of the people.
“Governor Soludo should focus on his mandate: security, infrastructure, jobs, and development. Threatening citizens will not build ‘Dubai’; it will only foster resentment and division. Justice, not coercion, is the solution. The release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu remains the symbol of freedom and hope for the Igbo people.”
IPOB concluded that until the perceived injustice is addressed, the Monday sit-at-home will continue as a voluntary expression of conscience and solidarity.