BY TAIBAT UMMI YAKUBU
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has announced an immediate boycott of the All Progressives Congress (APC), accusing the ruling party of being responsible for what it described as continued efforts to prevent its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, from challenging his conviction.
The group said the decision would take immediate effect, with members directed to stop attending APC rallies, displaying the party’s flags and participating in activities associated with it.
In a statement delivered on Sunday, the Head of IPOB’s Directorate of State (DOS), Mazi Chris Nwaogu, said the move followed the failure of the Court of Appeal to list Kanu’s appeal against his conviction on terrorism charges for hearing.
IPOB had previously threatened to boycott the 2027 general elections in the South-East if the appeal was not heard. Nwaogu, however, said the group’s immediate action would focus on the APC, while maintaining that its broader position on the elections remained unchanged.
He described the boycott as a response to what IPOB considers injustice against its members, insisting that the group was not supporting any other political party.
“IPOB remains strictly non-partisan,” Nwaogu said, adding that the boycott was not intended to benefit any political actor but to protest what he called systemic injustice.
He accused the APC-led Federal Government of undermining the judicial process to keep Kanu in detention and demanded that his appeal be listed and heard in open court.
Nwaogu also raised concerns over a separate case concerning Kanu’s alleged detention without trial for 14 months. According to him, the matter came up at the Federal Capital Territory High Court about two weeks ago, but the presiding judge reportedly said the court file was missing.
He alleged that the missing file and the failure to schedule Kanu’s appeal were deliberate attempts to frustrate legal proceedings. These allegations were made by IPOB and were not independently established in the statement.
The group’s leader was convicted on terrorism charges in November 2025, according to Nwaogu, who said Kanu’s legal team had filed an appeal challenging the judgment. He argued that the government’s failure to file a respondent’s brief raised questions about its position in the case.
Nwaogu said the immediate and unconditional release of Kanu remained IPOB’s principal objective, alongside its demand for the restoration of Biafra.
Meanwhile, he dismissed reports circulating online about a possible return of the enforced Monday sit-at-home order in the South-East, describing a purported audio message announcing the move as false.
He said neither IPOB’s Directorate of State nor the High Command of the Eastern Security Network had authorised a fresh sit-at-home order. He also warned that anyone attempting to enforce an unauthorised shutdown would face action from the group.
Nwaogu further accused the APC of using political figures from the South-East to advance its interests, citing alleged humiliations involving Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, Minister of Works Dave Umahi and Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo. He also criticised former Imo governor Rochas Okorocha’s political experience after he left the All Progressives Grand Alliance for the APC.
In another development, Nwaogu said IPOB’s legal team had identified 68 people it described as innocent Biafrans who were allegedly transferred from Wawa Barracks to correctional facilities in Kuje, Keffi and Suleja. He said the group’s lawyers were working to secure their release.
The APC and the Nigerian government were not represented in the statement to respond to the allegations.
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