The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), a separatist group that campaigns for an independent state of Biafra in south-eastern Nigeria, has insisted that the sit-at-home order it announced for Monday, 2 February 2026, remains in place and has not been withdrawn.
In a statement issued on Sunday, 1 February 2026, IPOB spokesperson Emma Powerful said the group was again informing Igbo people in Nigeria’s South-East region, as well as supporters of the Biafra cause, that the planned shutdown would still hold. Okay News reports that the group claimed it was responding to what it described as false messages circulating online about a cancellation.
A sit-at-home order is a protest tactic that encourages residents to stay indoors and keep businesses closed, often to press political demands. IPOB has previously linked such actions to its calls for the release of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, a Nigerian-British pro-Biafra figure who is in the custody of Nigeria’s federal authorities and facing charges in court.
In the latest statement, IPOB accused unnamed “agents” of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nigeria’s ruling political party at the federal level, of spreading misinformation and attempting to confuse the public. The group urged residents to disregard what it called fake claims, including allegations that its spokesperson had resigned or could not be reached.
Powerful said, “Biafrans are advised to beware of charlatans, ignore misinformation, and comply with the sit-at-home order on Monday,” while warning people not to be misled by individuals he described as impersonators or false associates of Kanu.
The statement also referenced Ifeanyi Ejiofor, who has been publicly identified in the past as a lawyer associated with Kanu’s legal matters. IPOB claimed Ejiofor had been removed from any such role and no longer had authority to speak for Kanu or the group. IPOB further alleged that some individuals were trying to pressure its spokesperson to stop issuing public updates about Kanu’s detention.
Powerful also mentioned the Directorate of State (DOS), a leadership structure linked to IPOB, claiming that certain figures within or around it had been compromised. He specifically named Chinasa Nworu and Chika Edoziem, alleging they contacted him and urged him to stop making statements about Kanu’s continued detention, which he said he refused to do.
The spokesperson further accused some persons of holding meetings with Governor Chukwuma Soludo, the elected governor of Anambra State in south-eastern Nigeria, to weaken support for Kanu among traders at Onitsha Main Market, a major commercial centre in Onitsha, one of Nigeria’s busiest trading cities.
He maintained that any resignation message circulated in his name was fabricated, and said the public should question how senior figures could claim he “did not exist” while still communicating with him. He also said he would be granting interviews on radio and other media platforms to address the controversy.
IPOB ended by repeating its call for residents and supporters to comply with the Monday sit-at-home, while insisting that those spreading false information would eventually be identified.
