Uzodimma: IPOB’s sit-at-home order didn’t work in Imo — residents can’t afford idleness

Hope Uzodimma, governor of Imo, says residents of the state shunned the sit-at-home order by the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The governor said this on Wednesday, while speaking to state house correspondents after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.

IPOB, on July 30, ordered a sit-at-home in the south-east every Monday until Nnamdi Kanu, its leader, is released from the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).

On August 14, the group announced a suspension of the order.

However, on August 16, many areas in Owerri, the Imo capital, were deserted despite the cancellation of the sit-at-home order.

Speaking on the development, the Imo governor said residents cannot afford to be idle, as most persons in the state are business owners.

He said residents took the decision to shun the order, adding that only authorities recognised by the constitution can issue such a directive.

“To the extent of what I know on the sit-at-home order, even the people on their own called off the sit-at-home order. In Imo state, it is not being observed. People are doing their businesses,” he said.

“Most people in Imo are businessmen and women, who depend on their daily activities and income to feed their families. So, they cannot afford to sit at home idle and allow hunger to ravage the state.

“South-east has a pan-leadership organisation, which is in charge of culture and social activities, Ohanaeze Ndigbo. I don’t want to speak for them and I know in Imo state, there is only one governor and only the governor can order, working with other members of the government, that people should sit at home and it will be obeyed.

“I don’t want to sit here and recognise that there is any order outside the government of Imo state, because there is a government. IPOB is not a government in Imo state. Imo state government has not authorised anything at all. People are going about their businesses; workers are going to work and normal business activities are ongoing. And for now, I told you that Imo state is relatively calm.”

Uzodimma also noted that the state has become peaceful, adding that with the cooperation of people, particularly traditional leaders, the government has been able to address criminality to some extent.