The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has demanded the immediate release of 83 Biafrans held in correctional facilities across northern Nigeria, following the release of four individuals who spent approximately four years in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).
IPOB said the release of the four Biafrans was welcome but insisted that it did not address the wider injustice against its members and other people of Biafran identity who remain in detention.
In a press statement issued on Thursday, November 5, 2026, the group’s spokesperson and Media and Publicity Secretary, Comrade Emma Powerful, disclosed that IPOB’s legal team had formally identified 83 Biafrans transferred from military custody at Wawa Barracks in Kainji, Niger State, to correctional facilities in Kuje, Keffi and Suleja.
According to Powerful, the organisation’s lawyers have communicated the names of the legal representatives of the affected detainees to the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation.
The group maintained that several other Biafrans remain in detention, with some serving life sentences, describing the situation as a systematic persecution of its people.
IPOB argued that the continued detention and prosecution of individuals on the basis of their alleged membership or association with the organisation amounted to the criminalisation of political identity.
IPOB Challenges Legality of Its Proscription
The organisation also renewed its challenge to the legal foundation of its proscription, arguing that the process was conducted through a civil ex parte proceeding and could not independently establish criminal liability against individuals.
IPOB further maintained that the proscription instrument did not receive the President’s personal statutory approval as required under Section 2(1)(c) of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2013.
The group argued that the signature of a Chief of Staff could not substitute for an approval specifically assigned by legislation to the President.
To strengthen its position, IPOB referenced Justice James Omotosho’s decision in MultiChoice Nigeria Ltd v. FCCPC, arguing that mandatory statutory requirements must be strictly observed regardless of the individuals or organisations involved.
The organisation questioned what it described as double standards in the application of Nigerian laws, insisting that legal requirements should not be interpreted differently when the rights of Biafrans are concerned.
Group Cites Existing Court Ruling and Pending Supreme Court Appeal
IPOB also referenced a subsisting inter partes ruling which, according to the organisation, established that it is not an unlawful society.
It maintained that the ruling cannot be disregarded by the Federal Government, the DSS or prosecuting authorities.
The organisation further disclosed that an appeal concerning its legal status and the validity of its proscription remains pending before the Supreme Court.
IPOB insisted that the government must address the legal questions surrounding the proscription rather than continue relying on the instrument to justify the detention and prosecution of its members.
The group maintained that no individual should receive a life sentence simply because of an association with IPOB, stressing that criminal prosecution must be based on proof of a legally defined offence committed by the individual.
“Political association cannot replace proof. An executive label cannot replace a valid law. And a defective instrument cannot become lawful through repeated reliance upon it,” the statement said.
IPOB Demands Accountability Over 83 Detainees
The organisation called on the Federal Government to account for all 83 Biafrans identified in Kuje, Keffi and Suleja, as well as every other Biafran currently in detention.
It also demanded explanations concerning individuals held at Wawa Barracks and those whose whereabouts remain unknown.
IPOB said the government must take responsibility for the years spent in detention by individuals arrested and imprisoned under what it described as a discriminatory system.
The group stressed that the release of four detainees after approximately four years in DSS custody should not be treated as the conclusion of the matter.
Calls on UN, US and EU to Intervene
IPOB called on the United Nations, the United States Government and the European Union to intervene over what it described as the persecution of Biafrans and the operation of an unjust judicial system against its members.
The organisation demanded the freedom of all Biafrans it considers unlawfully detained and an end to the criminalisation of IPOB membership.
“The release of four is not the end of the matter. It is an indictment of the system that kept them imprisoned for four years,” Emma Powerful stated.
IPOB reiterated that the Federal Government must account for every detained Biafran and address the legal and human rights concerns raised by the organisation.
