The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has reiterated its position that its members are not behind the criminal activities and sit-at-home being enforced in the southeast region of Nigeria.
The pro-Biafra group stated this in a statement in reaction to a report credited to the Federation of Nigerian Activists (FENA), led by one Mark Adebayo.
In the statement, FENA called on the government to stop IPOB before Southeast becomes ungovernable.
The group had accused the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) of being behind the violence in Igbo land.
He said that IPOB had “lost its original purpose and must be stopped before it makes the whole of Southeast ungovernable.”
But replying to Adebayo in a statement issued on Thursday by its Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, IPOB described Adebayo's group as faceless.
Powerful noted that the plan to disparage the genuine self-determination movement of IPOB by an “insignificant misinformed group like the Federation of Nigerian Activists and their unpopular and clueless leader called Comrade Adeboya indicated that the group and its leader have failed”.
He accused the group of peddling fake information against the IPOB movement because they are in league with criminals whose aim is to destroy the image of IPOB across the world, a plot he said would not succeed as the people of South East and indeed Biafrans knew those committing criminal activities in the South East.
Slamming Adebayo for his criticism, Powerful stated, "IPOB is not responsible for these criminalities going on in the Southeast instead you were among those recruited criminals hired to destroy Igboland and stop IPOB from achieving our end, but you have failed woefully on arrival and you and your group came very late.
"It is unfortunate that you didn't read numerous press releases where IPOB disassociated itself from criminals and hoodlums thinking that they are doing our people a favor.
“This nonexistent group that has no office should go back to the drawing board and stop linking IPOB with what they don't know. Do your research.
"Comrade Adebayo if you want to use IPOB to become popular, it would not work. Instead, you have trashed any image you had because of your ignorance. You can crawl back under the rock where you crawled out of," he stated.
Titled: "The vultures have gathered, and we are ready for them," IPOB spokesperson noted that the organization does not engage or indulge in criminalities because its leaders are intelligent and professional.
He warned the group to stop linking an innocent group like IPOB to criminalities henceforth as he is not going to benefit anything from it.
"Instead, it will destroy you in perpetuity," IPOB maintained.
The statement partly read, "We are a nonviolent movement seeking freedom from the Nigeria State. We will stop Nigeria from humiliating our people and put an end to their suffering at the hands of Nigeria. There is no going back on this project until Biafra's freedom comes through a UN-supervised referendum.
"Comrade Adebayo, you don't know what is happening in IPOB and ESN, and you are among those who recruited the Ekperima and his group of criminals to disturb Igbo Land. You people must fail. Your hungry group of Federation of Nigerian Activists, FENA, has no place in Nigeria.
"Mr. Adebayo and his hungry group don't know that Ndigbo knows who are doing kidnappings and killings when they stage sit-at-homes. We have always known that your hand is in the sinister plot to destroy Igboland.
"For your information, IPOB sit-at-home orders are not enforced or forced on our people because IPOB is peaceful and remains peaceful until Biafra freedom comes.
“Just know that Biafrans know who is constantly perpetrating criminalities in the Southeastern region. You and the Fulani government of Nigeria have failed woefully and can't resurrect until Biafra liberation is materialized."