Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho and a leading figure in the Yoruba self-determination movement in south-western Nigeria, has urged detained separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu to embrace dialogue with the federal government of Nigeria as a pathway out of his long-running legal and political challenges.
The appeal was contained in a statement released on Friday, February 13, 2026, and signed by Igboho’s lawyer, Pelumi Olajengbesi. In it, Igboho commended Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), for what the statement described as his decision to cancel the Monday sit-at-home order that has affected economic activity and public life across Nigeria’s South-East region for years.
Igboho described the cancellation as an important step towards restoring stability in the South-East, a zone largely populated by the Igbo ethnic group. The statement read, “Chief Sunday Adeyemo wishes to commend the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, on his recent cancellation of the Monday sit-at-home across the South-East zone of Nigeria.”
While praising that move, Igboho urged Kanu to go further by seeking talks and mediation with the current administration in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, arguing that engagement could help break the deadlock around Kanu’s continued detention and prosecution.
Igboho also expressed optimism that President Bola Tinubu’s government could be open to negotiation if approached in good faith, while noting that Kanu’s pursuit of self-determination remains a political issue that has generated strong feelings and deep divisions in Nigeria.
In addition, the statement warned individuals or groups it accused of profiting from insecurity and violence in the South-East, urging them to stop actions that undermine peace and block economic recovery in the region.
The sit-at-home order was introduced by the pro-Biafra group in August 2021, as part of protests over Kanu’s return to Nigeria and his subsequent incarceration. The action often led to the closure of markets, schools, banks, and offices in parts of the South-East on Mondays.
The report further stated that Kanu was convicted on charges related to terrorism on Thursday, November 20, 2025, and sentenced to life imprisonment, a judgment his family rejected while saying it would challenge the ruling on appeal. It added that he was moved to the Sokoto Correctional Centre in north-western Nigeria after the court held that the Kuje Custodial Centre in Abuja would not be suitable for him.