IPOB Condemns Soludo over Sealing of Onitsha Main Market Shops

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has accused Anambra State Governor Professor Chukwuma Soludo of authoritarianism after reports emerged that shops in Onitsha Main Market were being sealed for complying with a recent sit-at-home order.

In a statement on Tuesday, IPOB’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, warned the governor to immediately reverse the decision, describing the action as reckless and economically harmful.

Background of the Dispute

Governor Soludo had threatened to seal the shops of traders who refused to open on Mondays, following compliance with IPOB’s sit-at-home directive. The government previously closed the market for a week over similar compliance issues and warned of longer closures if traders persisted.

IPOB had called a sit-at-home on February 5, 2026, in protest against the sealing threats, but later officially cancelled the weekly Monday sit-at-home after a directive from IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu.

IPOB’s Reaction

The pro-Biafra group condemned the sealing of shops as collective punishment, emphasizing that citizens who did not open their shops had committed no crime. The statement read:

“Intimidation, threats, and economic punishment will not produce the normalcy Governor Soludo claims to desire. Instead, such heavy-handed tactics risk provoking unnecessary tension and deepening mistrust between the government and the people.”

IPOB highlighted that leadership requires patience, persuasion, justice, and respect for citizens’ rights rather than coercion, threats, or forced compliance. The group criticized Soludo for adopting tactics that they say mirror historical economic oppression of the Igbo people elsewhere in Nigeria.

The statement concluded by urging the governor to unseal all affected shops to avoid economic losses, preserve law and order, and foster unity within the state.