The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has strongly denied allegations by the Nigerian Army that its members abducted and assaulted a retired soldier, Corporal Toriola Adewale, sent to the South-East to spy on the group.
The army had earlier condemned the purported attack, linking IPOB to the incident.
The Nigerian Army, in a statement issued by its Director of Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, accused Simon Ekpa, a self-proclaimed leader of IPOB, of circulating a video in which the ex-soldier was seen being tortured.
According to the army, the video showed the retired soldier being coerced into calling for the resignation of Biafran soldiers from the Nigerian Army.
However, in a statement released on Wednesday, IPOB spokesperson, Emma Powerful, refuted the claims, dismissing them as propaganda and a “self-staged crime” by the Nigerian Army.
He argued that the video in question did not originate from IPOB and accused the army of fabricating the incident.
IPOB maintained that it had distanced itself from Simon Ekpa, who is based in Finland, yet the army continues to associate the group with him in an effort to discredit IPOB.
The group reiterated that it does not support any form of violence or coercion against individuals serving in the Nigerian security forces.
In his statement, Emma Powerful emphasized that IPOB has indeed called for Biafrans serving in Nigeria’s security agencies to resign, but under no circumstances has it ever forced anyone to do so.
He described the army’s allegations as a “false flag operation” aimed at justifying military actions against IPOB and the Igbo community.
The group further asserted that IPOB has no army and will not form one until Biafra is fully restored.
Powerful urged the Nigerian Army to stop linking IPOB to its “criminal agents” and to cease its attempts to destabilize the South-East region.
IPOB concluded by rejecting any association with the so-called Biafra Liberation Army, reaffirming its commitment to a peaceful and diplomatic approach to achieving its goals.
