Human rights lawyer and lead counsel to the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has urged Ndigbo to completely ignore the lockdown order issued by the Publicity Secretary of the group, Emma Powerful.
Powerful had issued a statement, saying that the entire
South-East would be locked down on Monday, February 2, 2026, in solidarity with
traders in Onitsha Main Market, whose shops were closed by Anambra State
Governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, for their continuous observance of sit-at-home
order.
Soludo had insisted that the market must open every Monday,
and that traders must always be in their shops.
But in what seems to be a disagreement within the leadership
of IPOB, the counsel to the group, Ejiofor in a statement he made available to
journalists, urged everyone to discountenance
the order.
He said IPOB had long denounced all sit-at-home orders and
has no connection whatsoever with the purported directive.
He said: “Let it be stated clearly, unequivocally, and
without ambiguity: this directive is fake—a phantom, a calculated falsehood.
“It is no longer sufficient to merely advise our people to
ignore publications from this source (Emma Powerful). The time has come for
clarity and firmness.
“Upon careful inquiry and diligent verification, especially
considering the delicate and hard-won calm presently returning to our homeland,
it became glaringly obvious that the so-called “Emma Powerful” platform has
been fatally compromised.
“It has been hijacked by vested interests whose business
model thrives on fear, disruption, extortion, and the cynical exploitation of
vulnerable communities.
“The peaceful global movement of the Indigenous People of
Biafra (IPOB) has formally and decisively disowned this fabricated publication,
categorically distancing itself from the false sit-at-home order and directing
Ndigbo to go about their lawful and normal activities without fear.
“Going forward, the message from IPOB is unmistakable: Any
publication attributed to “Emma Powerful” should be treated with extreme
suspicion, if not outright contempt.
“Frankly, one cannot but express astonishment, bordering on
disbelief, that at such a critical juncture, when relative peace is cautiously
resurfacing in Ala-Igbo, anyone would recklessly circulate information capable
of reopening wounds and inviting criminal infiltration.
“History has taught us, at unbearable cost, what happens
when fake directives fall into the hands of violent opportunists masquerading
as enforcers.
“The platform known as “Emma Powerful,” in its current
corrupted state, has positioned itself as an adversary to Ala-Igbo’s peace,
progress, and collective well-being,” Ejiofor stated.
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