ABUJA/ENUGU — The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has announced what it calls the “official and permanent” cancellation of the Monday sit-at-home directive across Nigeria’s South-East, effective Monday, February 9, 2026. The declaration was issued by IPOB spokesperson Emma Powerful, who said the instruction came directly from the group’s detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
In the statement, IPOB said markets, schools, offices, transport services and other economic activities should resume normally, and warned that any person or group attempting to enforce further Monday shutdowns would be acting against Kanu’s directive and the movement’s stated position.
The announcement, if implemented widely, marks a major shift in a protest tactic that has disrupted commercial and social life in the South-East for years. A 2025 SBM Intelligence assessment, cited by Reuters, estimated that sit-at-home-related violence and shutdowns caused hundreds of deaths and trillions of naira in economic losses across the region.
IPOB also warned residents about possible “false-flag” intimidation and urged people to remain calm and law-abiding while returning to daily activities. That caution reflects a persistent problem in the region: enforcement has often been attributed to mixed actors, including criminal elements, with authorities and separatist figures frequently disputing responsibility after attacks or coercive shutdowns.
The latest directive comes amid continued legal and political tensions around Kanu and the wider separatist question. Nigeria proscribed IPOB in 2017, and the movement has remained central to security and governance debates in the South-East.
The immediate test now is compliance on the ground: whether schools reopen fully, markets operate without intimidation, and transport corridors remain active through the next several Mondays. Local authorities, security agencies, traders’ groups and civil society actors are expected to watch closely for early signs of normalization—or resistance.
