People terrorising Enugu-Ezike are not ESN operatives, says IPOB

By : Lawrence Njoku, Enugu

Date: 24 August 2022 4:59am WAT

FILES-NIGERIA-BIAFRA-ANNIVERSARY-HISTORY-CONFLICT

(FILES) In this file photo taken on May 28, 2017 Supporters of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) wave the Biafra flag in the Osusu district of Aba. - In a region where separatist sentiments often flare up among the indigenous Igbo, officials are pointing at the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra or IPOB that agitates for a separate state. But the situation is far from clear. IPOB says it is falsely accused in a bid to divide the separatists who are already split over strategy. Some southern leaders accuse rivals of sponsoring attacks to discredit them. (Photo by STEFAN HEUNIS / AFP)

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) said, yesterday, that it has no camp in Enugu-Ezike, Igboeze North local Council of Enugu State.

The separatist group stated that those terrorising the area are neither IPOB volunteers nor members of the Eastern Security Network (ESN) operatives. It added that ESN stopped recruiting personnel two years ago.

Following increase in banditry, kidnapping and killings, a development linked to the activities of ESN, Enugu government had, last month, imposed curfew in the area and drafted more security operatives to contain the surge.

But the IPOB Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, stated that those terrorising the area were not members of the group.

He said: “IPOB wishes to reiterate, to the general public, especially the people of Enugu-Ezike, that those in their community and other parts terrorising them are not IPOB volunteers or ESN operatives.

“The ESN stopped recruiting personnel two years ago. Therefore, anybody deceiving and presenting him or herself to have joined the ESN recently is working with infiltrators and will die in the hands of security agencies.

“ESN does not have any operational camp at Enugu-Ezike, Igbo-Eze, Enugu North areas. Those terrorising men and women of God, including traditional rulers, are not ESN operatives or IPOB volunteers.

“IPOB and ESN do not call people to bring money to them. Anybody who wishes to support ESN operatives does so willingly and voluntarily without force or threat. The youths of the affected communities must come out and identify the criminals, because IPOB is coming out to deal with them.

“Those claiming to be autopilots without aeroplanes are not members of IPOB, and we cannot allow them to destroy IPOB’s image. Autopilots are free to do anything in their name but not impersonating IPOB.

“We discovered that those responsible for recent insecurity in Enugu-Ezike and other communities are hoodlums that were recruited by autopilots, who were driven out of Anambra and Imo states. These hoodlums found their way to Enugu-Ezike.”