ESN is the militant arm of IPOB, a secessionist organisation led by Nnamdi Kanu fighting for the ‘emancipation’ of the Igbo people of Southeast Nigeria.
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said that communities in Enugu State facing a series of attacks allegedly from Fulani militias are facing the consequences of pushing operatives of the Eastern Security Network (ESN) away from their domains.
In a statement issued by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful on Wednesday, the vulnerable communities, especially Agu-Amede and Eha-Amufu communities in the Isi-Uzo Local Government Area of the state allegedly used the Nigerian army and police to drive away ESN operatives who were protecting them.
ESN is the militant arm of IPOB, a secessionist organisation led by Nnamdi Kanu fighting for the ‘emancipation’ of the Igbo people of Southeast Nigeria.
According to IPOB, a traditional ruler, Igwe Christopher Nnamani, President General and Youth Leader of Eha-Amufu and its environs contributed to the killing of residents of the area by militiamen.
The group accused the monarch and the leaders of the communities of joining hands with the Nigerian government to drive ESN operatives out from their communities “in their desperation to ensure that Fulani takes over the communities and ESN operatives were moved out and Fulani came in to massacre them”.
IPOB vowed that ESN will not come to their rescue again because they “allowed Fulani terrorists to come.”
The organisation said “ESN was established and sent batches of ESN security outfit into their communities but ESN was attacked by the communities and many ESN members and IPOB members were killed and detained by the communities and youth of the communities”.
It noted that the “communities involved have discovered scores of dead bodies who were massacred by Fulani jihadists and foot soldiers.”
IPOB stated that any community that pushed ESN operatives out of their area should not expect them back.
It said, “The Nigeria military and police have failed to respond because they are behind and in support of the attacks by the Fulani terrorists who are massacring innocent citizens of Enugu (Enugwu) State. We are not sure that they are not directly responsible for the massacres and mayhem witnessed by our people in ‘Enugwu Provence’.
“IPOB and ESN are not coming for them but let the Agendist and Nigeria army and police not blame ESN for not coming to the defense of our people in that area of our land. Our men in the communities were massacred in cold blood without any reason and we promise them that Fulani will take over there in no distant time, then that ESN will revenge their death whether NO way (sic) the Fulani terrorist military and police like to support Fulani to continue eliminating them.
“IPOB is making it open to ESN operatives not to move to these communities in Enugu State because we cannot afford to defend them while they don't want us, Fulani must continue eliminating them because nobody is challenging them. Biafrans, you must ask the traditional ruler why they removed ESN from their place.”