The Finnish Government confirmed on Tuesday that it has started taking steps to address the Nigerian government’s complaint against Mr. Simon Ekpa.
Ms. Elina Valtonen, Finland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced during a news conference in Abuja that Ekpa’s case is now being handled by Finnish courts.
“We have taken this up and discussed this with the Nigerian authorities, and the entire process is within our judicial system,” she said.
Valtonen and her Nordic counterparts arrived in Nigeria on Monday to hold talks on promoting peace and security and explore opportunities for enhanced trade and investment cooperation between their nations and Nigeria.
The delegation includes the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sweden, Mr. Tobias Billström; the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland, Ms. Elina Valtonen; the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iceland, Ms. Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir; the State Secretary for International Development, Norway, Mr. Bjørg Sandkjær; and the Under Secretary for Foreign Policy, Denmark, Ms. Eva Marie Frida Barløse.
Persecondnews recalls that the Nigerian government has been urging its Finnish counterpart and the European Union to take decisive action against Simon Ekpa’s incendiary social media activities, which have been exacerbating violence and unrest in Nigeria’s southeast region.
Ekpa, a dual citizen of Nigeria and Finland, is accused of leading violent pro-Biafra separatist movements in Nigeria’s southeast region.
The self-proclaimed leader of the Biafra Republic Government in Exile has claimed responsibility for violent attacks on Nigerian security agents and those suspected of sympathizing with Nigeria, framing these actions as reprisals for the perceived terror inflicted by Nigerian security forces on ‘Biafra territory’.
From his base in Finland, Ekpa champions extreme measures to bring about the separation of Nigeria’s south-east region and parts of neighbouring states, seeking to create a sovereign Biafra nation, a quest that led to Nigeria’s Civil War between 1967 and 1970.
His methods include the brutal enforcement of an illegal stay-at-home order on Mondays in the region, in addition to attacks on federal government institutions within the reach of brutal enforcers.
Experts have yet to come to terms with the full extent of the adverse economic impact of the stay-at-home order complied with by citizens out of fear of attacks.
Ekpa has parted ways with Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the incarcerated IPOB leader, over disagreements on the best tactics to realize their shared vision of an independent Biafra nation.
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