The Abia state governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, has pleaded with the Federal Government to engage leaders of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in dialogues to bring about peace and justice in the South East troubled with insecurity challenges.
The governor told the Vanguard that although the region was not experiencing the same rate of kidnappings and killings as the north, it was ‘sitting on a keg of gunpowder.’
“I believe that there is some ideological sense in what these people in the South East are saying. There is something to listen to even though it is criminal to take up arms against the state,” he said.
The State of Play
Since the arrest of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, by the Federal Government last June, IPOB has imposed Monday lockdowns in the South East, preventing the free flow of activities and businesses.
Another group, The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has warned that if Nnamdi Kanu is not arraigned by October 21, it will stall the Anambra election scheduled for November and support IPOB in its quest for a one-month sit-at-home order in the South East.
