IPOB said this in a statement issued by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful on Tuesday as its reaction to a statement made by Kanu’s special counsel, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, on Arise Television on Saturday.
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said that Simon Ekpa, the Finland-based self-proclaimed disciple of Nnamdi Kanu and his (Ekpa) supporters are not followers of the detained IPOB leader.
IPOB said this in a statement issued by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful on Tuesday as its reaction to a statement made by Kanu’s special counsel, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, on Arise Television on Saturday.
During the programme, when Ejimakor was asked who the people enforcing the sit-at-home exercise in Southeast Nigeria are loyal to, and he said, "I would speak on what I know as of council. That might be limited knowledge that may be all you need to know.
"Nnamdi Kanu is the supreme leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra. There are no two supreme leaders and at this moment, there is no deputy leader.
“They have other leaders that are lower down the hierarchy of supreme leader or deputy leader.
"Standing on that, anybody that acts in the name of IPOB whether the person acted for good or bad or for the ugly is often attributed to the head of the organisation and the fish rots from the head.
"So Nnamdi Kanu is very concerned about this. He never meant for things to go this awry, to go out of control. He is trying to separate the apples from the oranges here so that when somebody goes out there and says 'I'm a disciple of Nnamdi Kanu' and he levies violence on the general public in the name of sit-at-home, Nnamdi Kanu gets to take the bad name simply because he is the head of the organisation. It's not fair to him.”
In reaction, IPOB described Ejimakor’s comment as misinformation, saying: “While we agree that some misguided supporters of Simon Ekpa are followers of Nnamdi Kanu, being under the illusion that Simon is working for the release of Kanu, in reality, however, the majority of his supporters are sworn enemies of IPOB who are working with Ekpa to sabotage IPOB's effort at liberating our people and the release of Nnamdi Kanu from detention.”
IPOB stated that Ekpa was never an IPOB member and has no alliance whatsoever with Kanu or the IPOB as both are focused on the actualisation of Biafra and have no business with criminality.
“The only remote connection is that he, Simon Ekpa, was talking about Biafra on his own platform, which Nnamdi Kanu saw in a positive light having supported anyone or group genuinely agitating for Biafra whether the persons are IPOB members or not.
“Simon has his group called Autopilot, he has his own government, which he announced himself as their Prime Minister. The question that people must ask themselves is whether Nnamdi Kanu is part of Simon's phantom government in exile.
“It is on record that Simon Ekpa has publicly maintained that his violent enforcement of the reckless sit-at-homes is to demonstrate that his so-called government in exile is in control of Biafra Land.
“He, Simon Ekpa, has not attributed the infamous sit-at-home to IPOB even though he is hiding under the pretense of seeking Nnamdi Kanu’s release to perpetrate his criminality in Biafraland.
“Simon Ekpa's criminal supporters who carry out violent enforcement of the infamous sit-at-homes are neither working for Mazi Nnamdi nor for IPOB.
“These criminals, under the command of Simon Ekpa, claim to be ESN operatives during their violent enforcement just to blackmail IPOB and give the DSS who recruited him a ground to continue the illegal incineration of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“Barr. Ejimakor is just one of the lawyers contracted to handle specific cases for Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. He is not and has never been for the avoidance of doubt, the legal representative of the Indigenous People of Biafra as a movement. He is not an IPOB member. He has no reason to meddle in IPOB operations beyond the special legal matters that he was contracted to handle.
“He has no authority or permission from the IPOB's Directorate of State to speak for IPOB outside the few legal matters assigned to him by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”
According to Powerful, “Ejimakor knows very well that Simon is a mole and an agent of the Nigerian government because he is an insider to the *DSS PROJECT OKWUDILI/ SIMON EKPA”.
IPOB said, “Mazi Nnamdi Kanu would not have found the need to write the fake disciple and Crime Minister Simon Ekpa if Barr. Ejimakor had done the needful months ago."
“Finally, the public should ignore the claims of Barr. Ejimakor on the Arise Television interview on July 29, 2023. It is completely false that Simon Ekpa and his supporters are the same as followers of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“The IPOB leadership, the DOS henceforth declares Barr. Ejimakor a persona non grata must desist from parading himself as IPOB and Mazi Nnamdi Kanu counsel from this day," the statement said.
But in his reaction to the position of IPOB on his Twitter handle, Ejimakor said, “It’s strange that a lawyer representing freedom fighters is being attacked by the same freedom fighters just because the lawyer dutifully implemented the order of their Supreme Leader.
“Nothing can be more damaging to freedom-fighting than this. The oppressor must be rejoicing.”
It’s strange that a Lawyer representing freedom fighters is being attacked by the same freedom fighters just because the Lawyer dutifully implemented the Order of their Supreme Leader. Nothing can be more damaging to freedom-fighting than this. The oppressor must be rejoicing. pic.twitter.com/ZAXehMZ1Q9
— aloy ejimakor (@AloyEjimakor) August 1, 2023