Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the preeminent Igbo social and cultural organization, has claimed that self-proclaimed separatist Simon Ekpa has accumulated large sums of money to fund his efforts to destabilize Igboland and thwart its development.
According to Ohanaeze, Ekpa, who is headquartered in Finland, has exploited the pro-Biafra movement and Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s name to profit himself at the expense of Ndigbo’s lives, property, and well-being.
They questioned why Finland has been hiding and enabling Ekpa to use its territory for what they called “deadly sit-at-home campaigns” and “destructive incitements” in Europe.
On Sunday in Enugu, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide National President Mazi Okwu Nnabuike made these remarks in a statement.
They claimed that Ekpa’s orders to stay indoors were part of a conspiracy to ruin the South East’s economy and way of life.
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and their leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, have issued a statement saying, “We want to make it abundantly clear to Ndigbo, Nigerians, and the international community that Simon Ekpa is not fighting the cause of Biafra.”
On the contrary, since then he has betrayed us all to our opponents, who seek to undermine our way of life on all fronts.
For financial reasons, he is also pushing against Kanu’s release. He’s aware that so long as unrest persists in Igboland, the federal government is likely to keep Kanu in custody.
Okwu continued, “In the same line, it is apparent that Ekpa is being supported and encouraged by powers within and without to demolish and hold the region down; this is so since South East’s loss is the gain of other regions of the country in a federal system.
We are already seeing a significant outflow of capital and the relocation of established firms to other parts of Nigeria.
Ohanaeze has also criticized the Finnish government, accusing it of helping to cause mayhem and bloodshed in the South East.
We warn the Finnish government that it cannot claim innocence for the bloodshed in our region at the hands of enforcers of Ekpa’s irrational sit-ins.
We must keep asking ourselves why a European culture with a reputation for respecting human life would continue to provide a safe haven for Ekpa and permit him to openly provoke calamity and command the wanton destruction of lives and property in Igboland. If his words or deeds cause the death of a single Finn, will Finland still treat him with child gloves? Asked Okwu.
The governing body applauded Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State for outlawing the sit-at-home protests on Mondays, which it said had been halted by all genuine pro-Biafra parties.
It also backed the Enugu State Government’s determination to investigate the possibility of bringing those responsible for crimes against humanity in the South East to justice through the International Criminal Court.
Okwu summed up the government’s stance by saying, “We stand with the Government’s position that nobody should be allowed to enjoy life and educate his children in another nation while causing deaths and destruction in another part of the world.”
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