The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has strongly distanced itself from the rising wave of insecurity, kidnappings, and violence rocking parts of the South-East and South-South regions of Nigeria, declaring that its movement has zero tolerance for criminal activities.
In a press statement released on July 2, 2025, and signed by its spokesperson, Comrade Emma Powerful, IPOB reaffirmed its stance as a disciplined, non-violent organization committed to a lawful pursuit of Biafran self-determination.
The group condemned in strong terms all acts of criminality—including kidnappings, arson, and extortion—committed under the guise of Biafra agitation.
“IPOB is a disciplined movement. We do not kill, we do not kidnap, and we do not burn our communities. We do not compel obedience through terror,” the statement read.
According to the group, recent incidents of violence reported in Enugu, Imo, Abia, Anambra, and Ebonyi States—including the extortion of traders and attacks on civilians and security agents—have no affiliation with IPOB. The organization warned that no individual or group is authorized to act in its name without approval from its central leadership.
“Let no criminal hide behind the revered name of IPOB to commit evil,” the group emphasized. “Let no cultist, bandit, political thug, or state-sponsored killer parade as a freedom fighter. IPOB has zero tolerance for criminality.”
IPOB further reiterated its commitment to peaceful advocacy, rooted in legal processes, referenda, diplomatic engagement, and grassroots mobilization.
It rejected the use of violence or fear to further its cause, warning that anyone enforcing unauthorized sit-at-home orders or committing violence in the name of Biafra is not one of them.
“Anybody enforcing sit-at-home orders without IPOB authorization is not one of us.
Anybody who abducts or kills innocent civilians, security agents, or traditional rulers is not one of us. Anybody intimidating traders, commuters, or students in the name of Biafra is a saboteur, not a patriot,” the statement said.
The group also alleged that some acts of violence in the region may be orchestrated by Nigerian security forces as part of covert operations aimed at discrediting IPOB and its detained leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“We have taken note of state-induced violence where government agents stage attacks or deploy counter-insurgency forces to terrorize civilians,” IPOB stated.
Concluding the statement, the group urged its members and supporters, both in Nigeria and the diaspora, to remain peaceful, focused, and loyal to the ideals of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“Any act of violence from this point forward will be treated as a betrayal of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and a direct sabotage of the Biafran cause,” it warned.
