An escalating internal feud within the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has resurfaced following conflicting directives over a proposed sit-at-home protest in the South-East, exposing worrisome divisions between the group’s Directorate of State and its longtime spokesperson, Emma Powerful.
Tensions within the separatist movement were reignited after Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, ordered the closure of Onitsha Main Market for one week over traders’ continued observance of Monday sit-at-home protests, despite a state ban on the practice.
The closure, enforced by heavily armed security personnel and armored vehicles, sparked outrage among affected traders and drew the intervention of IPOB, which publicly opposed the governor’s action and urged traders to reopen their shops.
Amid the standoff, a sit-at-home directive scheduled for Monday, February 2, 2026, was circulated under the name of IPOB spokesman Emma Powerful, calling for a total shutdown across the South-East in solidarity with the traders.
However, the order quickly became the centre of a rare and very public leadership dispute within the movement.
IPOB Directorate of State Bans “Emma Powerful” Identity
In a statement issued on Saturday, the Directorate of State (DOS) of IPOB formally disowned the sit-at-home directive and announced the immediate discontinuation of the operational pseudonym “Emma Powerful.”
The statement, signed by Mazi Chukwukadibia Edoziem, Head of the IPOB Directorate of State, declared that all future IPOB press releases must be issued exclusively on the organization’s official letterheaded paper.
According to the DOS, the pseudonym, which had historically been used for operational and security reasons, had been “abused, misused, and compromised,” creating serious risks for the organization and the wider Biafran self-determination struggle.
The directorate warned that individuals and groups had begun deploying the name to issue unauthorized statements capable of disrupting the fragile peace in the region.
For clarity, the DOS stated that any press statement released under the name “Emma Powerful” going forward does not represent the position of IPOB leadership.
The directorate also categorically denied authorising any sit-at-home order for February 2, stressing that no individual or faction had been mandated to impose a lockdown across Biafraland.
Emma Powerful Rejects DOS Authority, Insists Sit-at-Home Is Valid
In a swift response, Emma Powerful dismissed the DOS statement and challenged its legitimacy, insisting that only IPOB leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, possesses the authority to appoint or remove officers within the movement.
Reacting to a counter-directive issued by IPOB’s lead counsel, Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, urging residents to ignore the sit-at-home, Powerful accused the lawyer of being a non-member who had already been expelled from the organisation.
He maintained that IPOB operates under a strict chain of command established by Kanu and that his directives remain supreme.
“The chain of command in IPOB is not a recent invention. It is as old as the movement itself,” Powerful said. “A sacked lawyer and non-member of IPOB cannot speak for the movement.”
He further insisted that no media organization is permitted to publish IPOB-related information without clearance from the office of the spokesperson, describing this as organizational structure rather than personal authority.
Claims of Secret Meetings and Internal Compromise
Powerful also accused unnamed members of the DOS of secretly engaging with representatives of Governor Soludo, allegedly assuring the state government that IPOB would not oppose the market closure or security enforcement in Onitsha.
According to him, such actions amounted to betrayal of IPOB’s leader and ideology.
“Our leader has always stood—and will always stand—with the oppressed masses, not with their tormentors,” he said, rejecting any claim that IPOB had endorsed the intimidation of traders.
Powerful clarified that the February 2 sit-at-home was intended as a one-off protest and reaffirmed the group’s continued commitment to securing the release of Nnamdi Kanu.
Ejiofor Urges Public to Ignore “Fraudulent” Order
In a sharply worded rebuttal, IPOB’s lead counsel and human rights lawyer, Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, described the sit-at-home order as fake and dangerous, warning that it could reopen wounds in a region only recently returning to relative calm.
He said the platform known as “Emma Powerful” had been hijacked by vested interests who thrive on fear, extortion and disruption.
“Let it be stated clearly, unequivocally, and without ambiguity: this directive is fake, a phantom, a calculated falsehood,” Ejiofor said.
He urged South-East residents to go about their lawful activities without fear and cautioned that fake directives had historically enabled violent opportunists to exploit communities.
According to Ejiofor, IPOB must now publicly explain why the platform has become unreliable, warning that silence or ambiguity would only encourage further abuse.
“A masquerade that dances with fire should not be mistaken for a messenger of truth,” the statement concluded.
Growing Uncertainty for South-East Residents
The escalating war of words has deepened confusion among residents, traders and security agencies, raising concerns over public safety and economic disruption in the region.
With both sides invoking the authority of detained IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu, the dispute underscores a broader leadership crisis within the separatist movement at a time when tensions between state authorities, traders and pro-Biafra groups remain highly sensitive.
As of Saturday night, no official confirmation had emerged from Nnamdi Kanu regarding the sit-at-home order or the leadership dispute.
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