IPOB Alleges Persecution, Demands Unconditional Release of Detained Ndigbo

​NNEWI — The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has intensified its pressure on the Federal Government, demanding the immediate and unconditional release of all individuals of Igbo descent it claims are being unlawfully held across various correctional facilities and security holding cells nationwide.

​The separatist group alleged that the continued detention of its members points to a broader, systemic persecution targeting Ndigbo.

​In a robust statement issued by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, titled “The Persecution of Biafrans Must End: A Demand for Accountability and Rule of Law,” the group contended that the recent court-ordered release of four Igbo men—who endured nearly four years in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS)—serves as a glaring indictment of the nation’s justice administration.

​Disputed Detainees and Legal Battles

​According to IPOB, its legal representatives have tracked and identified at least 83 individuals allegedly transferred discreetly from military detention at Wawa Barracks in Kainji, Niger State, to conventional correctional centres in Kuje, Keffi, and Suleja. The group stated that its lawyers have already formally notified the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation regarding legal representation for the affected detainees.

​The organization expressed deep concern that several other detainees remain locked away, with some purportedly handed life imprisonment terms over allegations tied strictly to group membership. IPOB maintained that political alignment or affiliation with its movement should never be treated as an automatic criminal offence without proof of specific, actionable unlawful acts.

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​Challenging the Legal Basis of Proscription

​Stepping up its legal offensive, IPOB called into question the legitimacy of its official proscription as a terrorist organization. The group argued that the initial designation relied on a civil ex parte proceeding that lacked explicit presidential approval under Section 2(1)(c) of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2013.

​Citing legal precedents including MultiChoice Nigeria Ltd v. FCCPC presided over by Justice James Omotosho, IPOB stressed that statutory mandates must be upheld strictly regardless of the parties involved. The organization further drew attention to a subsisting inter partes ruling declaring that the group does not constitute an unlawful society, noting that a substantive appeal regarding the legality of the proscription remains pending before the Supreme Court.

​International Appeal

​Insisting that prosecutors must establish direct criminal culpability rather than relying on blanket associations, IPOB appealed to international bodies—including the United Nations, the United States Government, and the European Union—to intervene against what it termed persistent violations of human rights and due process.

​”The release of the four is not the end of the matter. It is an indictment of the system that kept them imprisoned for four years,” the statement concluded, as the group pressed for accountability and wholesale structural reforms.