Kanu orders ‘permanent’ end to IPOB’s monday sit-at-home in South-East

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has announced the permanent cancellation of the Monday sit-at-home across the South-East, bringing to an end a practice that has lasted for five years.

In a statement issued on Sunday, IPOB’s spokesperson, Emma Powerful, said the directive was given by the group’s detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who called on residents of the region to resume normal life without fear.

Powerful said Kanu urged people to return to work, reopen markets, and send their children back to school, stressing that there is “no longer any justification” for staying indoors on Mondays.

“The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), under the supreme leadership of Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, hereby announces to the entire world that the Monday sit-at-home across the South-East is officially and permanently cancelled with effect from Monday, February 9, 2026,” the statement read.

IPOB warned that any person or group attempting to enforce sit-at-home in the future would be acting against Kanu’s direct order.

The Monday sit-at-home began in 2021 as a protest against Kanu’s arrest and continued detention after his extradition from Kenya to Nigeria to face terrorism-related charges. Initially tied to his court appearances, the protest later became a weekly exercise, often enforced through threats and violence.

Although IPOB had at different times announced the suspension of the sit-at-home, compliance continued in many parts of the South-East due to fear, leading to significant economic losses, school closures, and repeated appeals by state governments for residents to ignore the order.

In recent months, some South-East governors have taken decisive steps to end the practice. Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, ordered the reopening of markets and schools on Mondays and warned that the government would no longer tolerate forced shutdowns. He also threatened salary deductions for public servants who fail to report for duty, insisting there is no official sit-at-home policy in the state.

IPOB had earlier accused state governments of intimidation, including market closures and threats against traders and workers who chose to stay at home out of personal conviction.

However, reiterating the latest directive, the group called on residents of the South-East to go about their lawful activities peacefully, declaring that “the era of Monday sit-at-home is over.”