Separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has criticised Anambra State Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, for allegedly attributing the rise in kidnapping incidents in the South-East to Igbo youths.
In a statement issued on Thursday, IPOB described the governor’s remarks as inflammatory, baseless, and dangerous, warning that such utterances could endanger innocent lives and trigger targeted attacks across the region.
Governor Soludo, while speaking to members of the Anambra community in Maryland, United States, was quoted as saying that 99% of individuals arrested for kidnapping in the state were Igbos, not Fulani herdsmen — a claim that has since sparked outrage.
Reacting, IPOB’s Director of Media and Publicity, Emma Powerful, said the statement could serve as justification for further clampdowns by security operatives and armed militias against young people in the South-East.
“This public utterance, made without any investigative evidence, now serves as a green light for Nigerian security agencies and Fulani-backed militias to unleash another wave of abductions and killings of innocent Igbo youths,” the statement read in part.
The group accused Soludo of playing into the hands of those allegedly behind state-sponsored violence in the region and questioned his motives.
“We ask: What kind of leader, amid ongoing military brutality and Fulani herdsmen attacks, turns around to accuse his own people without proof?” IPOB queried.
The pro-Biafra group also accused the governor of pursuing political relevance and seeking favour with Nigeria’s ruling elite at the expense of the safety and dignity of his own people.
Challenging Soludo to provide verifiable evidence to back up his claims, IPOB reiterated that it remains a peaceful and non-violent movement advocating for self-determination, with no ties to criminality.
The group further accused Soludo of reneging on his previous calls for the release of their detained leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, suggesting that the governor was now working against Kanu’s freedom.
IPOB urged residents of Anambra and the broader South-East to remain vigilant and discerning in identifying those it described as enemies of the region’s progress.
“We may be under siege, but we must not allow opportunistic leaders to shift blame and incite violence against their own,” the group warned.
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