The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has reacted to the conviction of Simon Ekpa by a Finnish court, saying Ekpa should bear his cross as he was an impostor, never a member of the IPOB.

In a statement by Emma Powerful, IPOB spokesman, the body stated that it is wrong “for the 

Nigerian government and its compromised media collaborators to link the conviction of one Simon Ekpa in Finland to IPOB’s lawful activities”.

According to Mr. Powerful, IPOB “under the command of our unlawfully detained Leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu,” is not a terrorist organisation but a self-determination group which believes in the actualisation of Biafra through non-violent means.

“The world must know that the question of Simon Ekpa’s non-membership in IPOB is already judicially settled in Finland.

“IPOB under oath in a Finnish court testified that Simon Ekpa has never held any position in IPOB or ESN.

“Ekpa himself under oath described himself merely as a ‘content creator,’ admitted he disowned IPOB, and boasted that he would destroy IPOB.

“Ekpa created his own parallel contraptions: “Biafra Government in Exile,” “Biafra Liberation Army (BLA),” and “Biafra Defence Force (BDF)” — entities repudiated and condemned by IPOB.

“Any narrative linking Ekpa’s personal downfall to IPOB is therefore deliberate misinformation — a calculated lie, knowingly repeated to deceive.

“The Nigerian state is orchestrating this smear campaign as a diversionary tactic, timed precisely to contaminate the upcoming ruling on Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s no-case submission before Justice James Omotosho, now adjourned until 10 October 2025”.

In querying what they termed “the unexplained delay in delivering judgment when the Federal Government has failed to establish even a prima facie case” against Kanu,  IPOB claimed that the federal government is “buying time to inject irrelevant and extraneous narratives like Ekpa’s conviction, in a bid to corrupt judicial reasoning”.

They called on the global community: the European Union & Finland, United Kingdom & United States, the United Nations to be reminded “that silence in the face of weaponized judiciary is complicity”.

They insisted that “IPOB is a peaceful movement registered under international law, committed to lawful self-determination. 

“Simon Ekpa’s conviction is his burden and his alone. IPOB will never carry it”.