The threats by the spokesperson of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Simon Ekpa, to disrupt the 2023 elections in the South Eastern part of the country, have not led to any action from the Federal Government.
Ekpa made the threat considered treasonable by legal observers in a pre-recorded video message in Finland.
Sources in the Presidency disclosed to QUEST TIMES that the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs would be summoning the Finnish Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr. Jyrki Pulkkinen, over the comments by Ekpa.
But as at the time of going to the press, no such summon has been announced by the Ministry.
Ekpa, who is a dual citizen, reportedly threatened in Finland on October 4 to disrupt Nigeria’s democratic process.
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Ekpa issued a statement on behalf of the IPOB to disrupt the conduct of elections in the South-East in 2023 if the FG does not grant the request for “Biafra people to exit Nigeria.”
According to Ekpa, “exiting Nigeria will start with stopping elections in Biafra territory. So, we are going to fight to ensure that nobody will vote in Biafra land.
“So, we are taking our own destiny into our own hands. We are taking our future into our own hands. And, in 2023, after we successfully stop Nigeria from conducting elections in Biafra land, the door will be opened.
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“It is going to be either the exit of Biafra in peace or Biafra will engage the Nigerian state in guerrilla warfare. It is going to last for a while. We are ready and we have decided to leave Nigeria. And it will start immediately we have successfully stopped the election.”
Foreign policy and international affairs experts give divergent views.
A foreign affairs expert based in Onitsha is of the view that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs should have “issued a subtle threat to the Finnish Ambassador to get Ekpa extradited to Nigeria. Even if he is a Finnish dual citizen, his actions portend serious danger to Nigeria’s national security. Finland also needs to show that it is not backing terrorists against Nigeria.
“Also, the Nigerian government should use a Gestapo method to get him back to Nigeria. Nnamdi Kanu was arrested in Kenya in 2021 after making so many threatening statements against Nigeria from abroad,” he said.
But, Dr. Ferdinand Ottoh, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Political Science, University of Lagos, is of the view that the Nigerian government can only involve the Finnish ambassador if such statements are coming from an official in the Finland government.
“It’s not a diplomatic issue. Since Ekpa is not a Finnish government official, involving the Ambassador is no point. Such a statement would have been viewed seriously by the Nigerian government if there is any indication that Ekpa has the backing of the Finnish government,” the Foreign Policy scholar said.
He said there are so many ways of dealing with such matters in international affairs.
“Federal Government should not place importance on noisemakers,” he said.