IPOB declares Kanu’s disciple, Ekpa, wanted over secret intel service

Outlawed Igbo separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has declared Simon Ekpa, the self-styled disciple of its leader Nnamdi Kanu, wanted over the purported launch of a secret intelligence service by a breakaway faction of the group run by Ekpa.

Ekpa, who was made the Director General of IPOB’s pirate Radio Biafra shortly after the arrest and extradition of Kanu from Kenya last year, formed a parallel group called ‘IPOB Auto-Pilot’ shortly after he was removed as the DG, and since then, has been having a running battle with the group.

In a statement declaring Ekpa wanted and issued by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful on Saturday, the group acknowledged that though the secret Intel service known as M-Branch was a brainchild of Kanu, it had not yet been approved for launch contrary to Ekpa’s alleged launch.

While disowning Ekpa and his version of the M-Branch, Powerful also claimed was never part of the IPOB family as his activities were rather suspicious.

“IPOB has been existing long before Simon Ekpa and Auto-Pilot group came on board. Simon Ekpa and his group are neither part of IPOB worldwide family neither do they subscribe to our operational methodology and people should therefore stop associating them with the revered IPOB under the command of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu,” Powerful said in the statement made available to Ripples Nigeria.

“Henceforth they and the general public are put on notice to desist from using the name of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, ESN and IPOB to defraud the unsuspecting public or for any of their activities.

“Ekpa and his group should stop their attempt to ridicule and debase the institutions our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu sacrificed all to establish.

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“We want to place it on record that Simon Ekpa is not, and has never been a member of IPOB.

“We want to clarify that M-Branch which these dissidents are claiming to be forming, was commissioned by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu many years ago before launching ESN.

“IPOB’s M-Branch personnel do not have uniform. M-Branch is the IPOB international secret service. They are not in uniform just as secret service people anywhere are not uniformed men. So, anybody claiming to be forming M-Branch with uniform is on his own,” he said.

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