'IPOB's tactics harming the Igbo greatly,' Moghalu concerned about Anambra election

Former presidential candidate, Prof. Kingsley Moghalu, is worried the tactics of separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), are harmful to the southeast region.

The group was designated a terrorist group by the Federal Government in 2017, but members have continued the agitation for secession of the region from Nigeria.

The Eastern Security Network (ESN), a paramilitary wing created by IPOB, has been blamed by authorities for the spike in insecurity in the southeast since last year.

The group has also threatened to boycott the November 6 Anambra State governorship election, declaring a sit-at-home order to force the government into releasing its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, from pre-trial detention.

Moghalu said in a statement on Wednesday, November 3, 2021 that the election will test the legitimacy of Nigeria's democracy.

He noted that IPOB's sit-at-home order is a complex problem that the government has failed to handle well, preferring force over dialogue.

The former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said IPOB is occupying a vacuum created by the failure of the southeast's traditional political elite, but that the group's methods are harmful.

"Say what anyone may, the violence, state of fear, and staggering economic productivity losses, increase rather than reverse marginalization and steals hope from the future of our young people in the region," he said.

Moghalu said authorities must reassure residents of Anambra about their safety so that voters are confident enough to go to the polls.