By Kevin Akor
ONITSHA, Nigeria (chatnewstv.com) — The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has declared a sit-at-home across Nigeria’s Southeast on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, in protest against the Anambra State government’s closure of the Onitsha Main Market.
The directive affects Anambra, Abia, Enugu, Ebonyi and Imo states and follows an order by Anambra State Gov. Chukwuma Soludo, who this week shut the market for one week, citing the continued observance of sit-at-home protests that have persisted since July 2021.
Soludo warned that the recurring shutdowns were crippling the state’s economy and urged residents and traders to stop complying with the protests.
But traders at the Onitsha Main Market said their decision to stay away from work was an act of solidarity with IPOB’s detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who is standing trial on charges linked to separatist agitation.
In a statement issued Friday, IPOB accused Soludo of working with what it described as “Abuja collaborators” to undermine the economic rights of Igbo traders and the Biafran self-determination movement.
“The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), under the leadership of Nnamdi Kanu, hereby declares a Biafra-wide solidarity strike, a complete lockdown of all economic activities across Igboland and wider Biafran territories, on Monday, February 2, 2026,” the group said.
IPOB described the closure of the market as an attack on traders’ livelihoods and insisted that the sit-at-home was a voluntary act of solidarity, not one enforced by the group.
The separatist movement urged residents to remain indoors and refrain from commercial activities on the day, while calling on supporters to act peacefully and within the law.
As of the time of filing this report, the Anambra State government had not responded publicly to IPOB’s latest declaration.
