IPOB declares solidarity with Hausa, northern groups amid freedom struggle
IPOB announced on Friday that it embraces solidarity with the Hausa and other northern ethnic nationalities, following similar declarations of support from northern youths and the Northern Nigeria Rescue Movement (NNRM). Acting on the directive of IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu, the group’s Directorate of State issued a statement affirming that the pursuit of freedom for one people must never be seen as hatred for another. IPOB spokesman Emma Powerful said the move rejects attempts to weaponise ethnic, religious or regional differences against ordinary people whose common aspirations include dignity, freedom, justice and the right to determine their own political future.
The statement highlighted that Kanu’s Radio Biafra broadcasts have long spoken of an emancipated, politically conscious Hausa nation capable of reclaiming its historical dignity. IPOB stressed that the freedom of Biafrans and the emancipation of the Hausa nation are not mutually exclusive, and that every ethnic nationality—large or small—deserves self‑determination within Nigeria’s current structure. It reiterated that a peaceful, internationally supervised referendum remains the democratic path forward, allowing peoples to choose their political futures or shape new arrangements.
What does this cross‑ethnic solidarity mean for the broader struggle for self‑determination in Nigeria, and how might ordinary citizens interpret or respond to such unity amid ongoing calls for restructuring?