By CHARLES IWUOHA

Secessionist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has alleged that the factional leader, Mr Simon Ekpa was working for the Department of State Services (DSS), to bring down the group.

Publicity Secretary of the group, Emma Powerful made the allegations in a press release on Monday, claiming that Ekpa was in 2016, trained by DSS and sent into IPOB as a mole.

Ekpa, a Finland-based separatist leader, since the arrest of IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu in 2021, claimed leadership of the group and later styled himself as the Prime Minister of the Biafra Government in Exile.

He Is alleged to be responsible for the civil disobedience orders in the southeast region and is reported to be responsible for the violence unleashed on innocent people during the sit-at-home days.

Although IPOB has constantly dissociated itself from the activities of Ekpa, the self-appointed disciple of Nnamdi Kanu, he insists his actions are to demand the speedy release of Kanu.

Powerful said: “Ekpa was prior to this period groomed by the Nigerian DSS to usurp the leadership of IPOB in 2016 but that evil plans failed woefully.

“Simon Ekpa was the same person as the faceless Okwudili that DSS created in 2016 as the new leader of IPOB when our leader was in detention in 2016. Prior to this time, Simon was a hater of Ndigbo and particularly, IPOB in Finland. IPOB members in Finland will attest to this.

“Simon Ekpa is the exclusive project of the Nigerian DSS, to create a situation of unrest and hostilities in the South East which the end product was to destroy the image of IPOB.”

The group said if it was not so, the federal government would have taken certain steps to arrest his activities in the zone.

“Why is the Nigerian government not making any effort to diplomatically engage the Finnish Government about the visible hostilities of Ekpa? Why did Nigeria suppress the Legal Investigation of Ekpa in Finland, also his court cases in Nigeria?”

The group said If the federal government was serious about ending Ekpa’s rascality in the zone, it would have ordered the DSS to allow Kanu to address his followers through his social media channels.

The group also called on Its members to discountenance Ekpa while also challenging him to attempt to dish orders to IPOB members without using Kanu’s name and see that no one would listen to him.

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