The Indigenous People of Biafra has warned the Anambra State Government against penalising residents who choose to observe the Monday sit-at-home, insisting that the action is voluntary, peaceful and lawful.
The group made the call on Sunday in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, while reacting to a directive by the Anambra State Government warning workers, especially in the education sector, that absenteeism on Mondays would attract salary cuts or outright forfeiture.
IPOB said Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo has no constitutional power to compel citizens to open their businesses or move about against their will, stressing that remaining indoors on Mondays is an act of conscience and solidarity with its detained leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
“Let it be stated clearly and without ambiguity: Anambra is not a military barracks. No governor has the lawful power to compel free citizens to move about against their will, especially when their action is a peaceful, non-violent expression of conscience,” the group said.
IPOB described the Monday sit-at-home as a form of civil disobedience and not terrorism, arguing that democratic societies recognise the right of citizens to engage in peaceful protest against perceived injustice.
It stated that traders, students, professionals, elders and youths who choose to stay indoors on Mondays do so voluntarily and not by force, adding that the action does not amount to rebellion or criminality.
The Anambra State Government had earlier announced that the protracted Monday sit-at-home had been abolished with immediate effect.
A circular issued by the state Ministry of Education and signed by the Permanent Secretary, Dr Ifeoma Agbaizu, warned that any staff, both tutorial and non-tutorial, who fail to attend work on Mondays would either receive only 20 per cent of their salary or forfeit it entirely.
According to the circular, the directive followed a State Executive Council meeting presided over by Governor Soludo on January 21, and attendance on Mondays has been made a key benchmark for salary payment. It added that attendance registers would be closely monitored before salaries are processed.
Reacting, IPOB accused the governor of harassing residents in a bid to impress authorities in Abuja rather than addressing the grievances driving agitation in the South-East.
“The frustration in Igboland is deep. Rather than confront the injustice that fuels agitation, the governor has chosen to threaten traders, punish workers and intimidate citizens for choosing to stay in their homes peacefully,” the group said.
IPOB warned that any attempt by the state government to set up enforcement squads or task forces to compel residents to open shops or resume work on Mondays would amount to provocation and oppression.
“That will not be governance. That will be oppression, and the people will treat it as an open declaration of hostility,” the group warned.
While insisting that it does not force anyone to observe the sit-at-home, IPOB maintained that no government has the right to force people to abandon it.
“The sit-at-home is voluntary. People who stay home do so because they believe sacrifice is part of the struggle for justice and freedom,” it stated.
The group advised Governor Soludo to focus on governance, security, infrastructure and economic development, adding that the release of Nnamdi Kanu remains the solution to the crisis.
“The solution is not threats. The solution is justice. Until that injustice is addressed, every Monday will remain a day of silent protest by conscience,” the statement added.
