Peter Obi, Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, has criticised the sit-at-home by a branch of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in the area, calling it criminal conduct creating unnecessary hardship.
Obi decried the deaths in Southeast, Benue, and Plateau states, urging a more strategic approach to end the violence.
In a series of tweets on Thursday, the LP candidate said it is intolerable that hundreds of innocent lives would be squandered in Nigeria via community riots, robbers, and abduction.
“The escalating instability in the nation resulting in senseless bloodletting, especially in the North Central zone, and the continuous interruption of commercial and social activities in the South East are highly disturbing.
“Also concerning is the continuous interruption of economic and social activities in the South East area over the Sit-at-Home command purportedly emanating from the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, while the organisation has officially denied giving such instruction.
“What is going on in the South East thus is fundamentally a criminal enterprise that must be addressed in the bud, with all hands on deck, security agencies, and the people alike,” Obi said.
He applauded Southeast governors for their renewed efforts to restore peace but stressed the need to be more strategic and intelligence-driven in decreasing innocent suffering.
“We as a nation via our different administrations should enhance our respect for human life in the form and manner we react to crises that impact lives,” Obi stated.
He asked traditional, Christian, and Muslim leaders to continue promoting peace in their communities.
