AFTER Simon Ekpa Was Arrested; SEE What IPOB Members Revealed About Him
The proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has distanced itself from Simon Ekpa, a Finland- based agitator recently arrested for spreading terrorist propaganda. IPOB clarified that Ekpa was never a member of the group, nor did he hold any leadership position within its ranks.
On Thursday, Finnish authorities detained Ekpa and four others for alleged terrorist offenses, including incitement and financing of violence. The district court of Päijät- Häme ordered Ekpa’ s imprisonment, accusing him of committing these crimes in 2021.
In a statement released on Friday, IPOB spokesperson Emma Powerful denounced Ekpa as a ” destructive agent” paid to sabotage IPOB’ s peaceful movement for self- determination. ” Simon Ekpa was never and is not an IPOB member, let alone a leader, ” the statement read. ” He is not registered with any IPOB unit in Finland or globally. ”
Powerful reaffirmed IPOB’ s commitment to non- violence, emphasizing that the group seeks Biafra’ s independence through a supervised United Nations referendum. ” IPOB has operated peacefully for two decades, with no history of violence or armed struggle, ” he stated.
According to the statement, Ekpa exploited the passion of Biafrans for self- determination to recruit violent criminals, destabilize the South- East, and tarnish IPOB’ s reputation. ” He was a paid agent working to infiltrate and destroy IPOB’ s peaceful movement, ” Powerful added.
Following the arrest of IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu in June 2021, Ekpa was appointed to manage Radio Biafra, the group’ s broadcast arm. However, his tenure was short- lived, as IPOB dismissed him weeks later for refusing to adhere to its rules of engagement.
The fallout led to a split within IPOB’ s ranks, with Ekpa forming his own faction and issuing counter- orders, including controversial sit- at- home directives in Nigeria’ s South- East. IPOB leadership repeatedly disassociated itself from these directives, blaming the Ekpa- led faction for escalating violence in the region, including attacks on security personnel and public infrastructure.
Recently, Ekpa declared himself the prime minister of the Biafra Government in Exile (BGIE) and formed an armed group called the Biafra Liberation Army. Using social media, he has shared graphic images of violence, spread disinformation, and called for the destruction of public facilities.
IPOB urged its members and supporters to remain focused on their core objective of achieving a sovereign Biafra state. ” The Nigerian government and its collaborators have tried to pin Ekpa’ s violent activities on IPOB to blackmail and demonize our peaceful struggle, ” Powerful said.
With Ekpa’ s arrest, IPOB hopes for clarity regarding the distinction between its peaceful objectives and the violent actions attributed to Ekpa’ s faction.
