The Indigenous People of Biafra has insisted that the weekly Monday sit-at-home observed in parts of the South-East is a lawful and peaceful civil protest, warning Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, against imposing sanctions on workers who stay away from work on those days.
In a statement issued on Sunday by its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, the group described the sit-at-home as a voluntary expression of solidarity with its detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu, and not a criminal act.
IPOB was responding to the Anambra State Government’s directive threatening disciplinary action, including pro-rata salary deductions, against teaching and non-teaching staff who fail to report for duty on Mondays.
The state government had announced that, from February 2026, salaries of civil servants would be paid based on attendance as part of measures to curb the sit-at-home.
Reacting, IPOB accused the state government of attempting to criminalise a peaceful protest, warning that such actions amount to an attack on the rights and dignity of the people.
“The Monday sit-at-home is a civil disobedience, not terrorism,” the group said. “Citizens who choose to remain indoors as a symbolic protest are exercising their fundamental rights. It is neither rebellion nor an offence.”
The group argued that no governor has the legal authority to compel citizens to open their businesses or move about against their will, especially when their actions are non-violent.
“Anambra is not a military barracks, and the people are not tenants in their own land,” the statement added. “No government should intimidate its citizens for acting according to their conscience.”
IPOB further warned Governor Soludo against setting up enforcement teams or task forces to compel compliance, saying such a move would escalate tension in the state.
“We do not force anyone to sit at home, but no government should force people to go out,” the group said. “Those who stay indoors do so voluntarily, believing that sacrifice is part of the struggle for justice.”
According to IPOB, the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu remains the core issue fueling agitation in the region, urging authorities to address what it described as a longstanding injustice.
“The solution is not threats or punishment. The solution is justice,” the group stated. “Until that injustice is addressed, Mondays will remain a day of silent protest, driven by conscience, not coercion.”
The group urged the Anambra State Government to reconsider its approach, warning that history would judge leaders who, in its words, “turn against their own people to impress external interests.”
The Anambra State Government had earlier confirmed that the pro-rata salary policy was approved during the end-of-tenure retreat of the State Executive Council in Awka, according to the Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor.
