TDThe Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) has declared May 30, 2026, as the official date for the annual Biafra Day commemoration.
The event marks the 59th anniversary of the declaration of Biafra by Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu on May 30, 1967.
In a press statement signed by Comrade Edeson Samuel, National Director of Information, the group said the anniversary would be observed across the South-East and other parts of the former Eastern Region with a sit-at-home exercise.
The exercise is aimed at sober reflection and remembrance of those who died during the Nigerian Civil War.
According to the statement, all markets, public and private motor parks, schools, banks, and business premises are expected to remain closed from 6:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on the day of the commemoration.
The group described the exercise as a mark of honour, patriotism, and remembrance for men and women who lost their lives during the three-year civil war between Nigeria and Biafra from 1967 to 1970.
MASSOB also used the occasion to express solidarity with Nnamdi Kanu, calling for his immediate release. The organization alleged that Kanu was being unjustly detained because of his agitation for Biafra self-determination.
The statement stressed that the sit-at-home directive was part of MASSOB’s longstanding non-violent civil disobedience strategy and insisted that residents would not be forced or intimidated into complying with the exercise.
“MASSOB and other pro-Biafra agitators will not molest, compel or intimidate anybody to observe the stay-at-home exercise,” the statement noted.
It added that members of the group would remain indoors throughout the day.
The organization further stated that there would be no street protests, processions, or public demonstrations during the anniversary celebration.
MASSOB also alleged that Nigerian security agencies, including the Army, Police, DSS, and Civil Defence, would likely deploy heavily across major cities in the South-East during the anniversary period.
The group claimed such deployments reflected what it described as fear by the Nigerian state over renewed Biafra agitation.
Reaffirming its commitment to self-determination, the group maintained that “no amount of intimidation, arrests, or oppression” would stop what it described as the “spirit of Biafra.”
The statement was issued under the leadership of Comrade Uchenna Madu, leader of MASSOB.
