LAGOS, June 18, 2026 — The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has dissolved the movement’s third Directorate of State (DOS) administration and inaugurated a fourth administration, appointing United States-based Mazi Chris Nwaọgụ as the new head of the body.
The announcement was made in a statement issued on June 17 from Langerfeld, Germany, and signed on Kanu’s behalf.
According to the statement, Nwaọgụ will immediately assume responsibility for the administration, coordination, and day-to-day management of IPOB affairs under the authority and direction of Kanu.
The Directorate of State serves as the administrative arm of IPOB and was established by Kanu in 2012. Previous heads of the body include Dr. Justin Akujieze, who led the first administration from the United States, Mazi Uchenna Asiegbu of Spain, who headed the second administration, and Chika Edoziem of Switzerland, who led the third administration after being appointed in March 2017 during Kanu’s detention at Kuje Prison.
The statement said the decision to dissolve the third administration followed “a careful assessment of the performance, priorities, and stewardship of the movement during one of the most critical periods in the history of the Biafra restoration project.”
Among the reasons cited for the dissolution was what the statement described as the administration’s failure to adequately address the welfare of detained IPOB members.
“The most grievous failure of the outgoing administration was its inability to prioritize the welfare and liberation of hundreds of Biafrans detained across various detention facilities, particularly those held for years without trial at Wawa Military Barracks in Niger State,” the statement said.
It further alleged that many detainees endured severe hardship, with some reportedly dying in detention while others spent years incarcerated under difficult conditions.
The statement also accused the dissolved administration of focusing on internal disputes rather than advancing the movement’s objectives.
“At a time when the movement faced unprecedented external attacks, too much energy was diverted into internal disputes, personal rivalries, gossip, blackmail, and factional controversies,” it stated.
According to the statement, resources that could have been directed toward legal advocacy, prisoner welfare, diplomacy, and strategic planning were instead consumed by internal conflicts that weakened the movement.
The newly inaugurated fourth Directorate of State administration is expected to oversee IPOB’s affairs with immediate effect.