The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has raised an alarm that “criminals” working for Simon Ekpa, the Finland-based self-proclaimed disciple of the IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu, have been calling and threatening some people of the Southeast region of Nigeria to make monetary donations for IPOB.
The IPOB Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, who made this known in a statement on Thursday said that the perpetrators who have been making the calls and the threats in his name (Powerful) are also the criminals who have continued to enforce the cancelled sit-at-home order in the Southeast region.
Powerful said that neither himself “nor IPOB members or ESN (Eastern Security Network) operatives call and threaten people for money. IPOB or ESN commanders have never coarsed anyone for support. Even the registered IPOB family members are not forced to give money to the movement, the statement said.
“Those doing such evil are autopilot members led by criminal Simon Ekpa. Everything IPOB does is purely voluntary, not by threat or compulsion. IPOB doesn’t encourage any form of criminality.
“Our people should be very careful because neither I, Comrade Emma Powerful, nor any member of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) can call anyone and threaten him or her to donate money for the struggle. IPOB restoration movement and struggle is funded by IPOB members globally and others who identify with the Biafra cause.
“We warn those criminals using names of ESN commanders and Emma Powerful the media and publicity secretary for extortion of innocent citizens to desist because IPOB leadership, the DOS did not send them, if they insist nobody should blame ESN for confronting these criminals, these people are those enforcing infamous sit-at-homes in our land.
“These criminals and impersonators claiming to be ESN commanders always threaten unsuspecting individuals and victims with violence if they fail to give them money for IPOB and ESN. No ESN commander can do such.”
The IPOB spokesperson asked the people of the Southeast to send the details of the phone number(s) through which they receive such a call to security agencies “or ESN camps or contact and report the caller’s details to IPOB.”
IPOB said, “Those involved in this latest blackmail and scam using the name of Emma Powerful and IPOB movement should retrace their steps or face the wrath of IPOB.”
“The public should take note and avoid falling into a scam from faceless criminals and impersonators organised from far away Finland to be humiliating our people,” it added.
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