On Thursday (August 10, 2023), the pro-Biafra separatist group Indigenous People of Biafra, or IPOB, urged media outlets and social media sites to stop referring to Simon Ekpa, the head of the Auto Pilot Biafra Government in Exile, as one of their members because he is not.
The pro-Biafra organization’s spokesperson for media and publicity, Emma Powerful, released this information in a statement.
Ekpa, he claimed, is not a registered member of the separatist organization, and as a result, his activities do not coincide with those of IPOB.
According to the separatist group’s statement, the Department of State Services, or DSS, and some other affiliated organizations are attempting to sabotage, undermine, and split IPOB in order to weaken the movement from within.
According to the pro-Biafra organization, Ekpa follows the orders of the Nigerian secret police with the intention of putting an end to the movement because IPOB is always blamed for his violent and other illegal activities.
According to the statement, it reads.
“It has become very imperative that we appeal to the media houses, social media outfits and platforms to be appropriately guided in reflecting the reality in their publication linking Simon Ekpa’s violent and other unlawful activities to IPOB when he is not our member and has told the world that the group he leads are Auto Pilot and Biafra Government in Exile.
“We have observed with dismay the deliberate moves by some media houses and social media platforms to attribute the violent and other activities of Simon Ekpa, to the noble family of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB.
“For clarity and emphasis, Simon Ekpa is not in any way registered with any unit of IPOB, neither is he connected to Eastern Security Network, ESN. We want the public to henceforth desist from further linking and associating Ekpa with IPoB and its activities. He is not our member and we have nothing to do with him. His activities are not and will never be in tandem with those of IPoB.
“We are mindful of the concerted efforts of DSS and similar agencies to infiltrate, undermine and divide IPoB with the sole motive of weakening the organisation from within, but using Ekpa who is not our member and can never be one is one of such failed move by the DSS.“
The statement of the pro-Biafra group continues,
“Ekpa is unknown to ESN. The fact that he has been using the ESN name to deceive gullible people through his endless fundraising schemes, does not in any way link him to ESN formed by IPoB. Ekpa said he leads an inconspicuous group called Auto Pilot and Biafra Government in Exile. He can be seen in most of his social media videos alluding to that very fact and certainly not a member or leader of IPoB.
“It is therefore worrisome that some media houses have persisted in attributing Simon Ekpa to membership of IPoB irrespective of the obvious. We appeal to ladies and gentlemen of the media to please refrain from associating Ekpa as a member of IPoB. because he is not one of us.”
