Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Gwabin Musa is seriously justice for victims of heinous terror in the country, hinting that that the arrest of the infamous self-proclaimed Prime Minister of Biafra Government in Exile (BGIE) and the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Simon Ekpa would lead to his eventual extradition to Nigeria to face charges of terrorism in the South East region.
His reaction to Ekpa’s arrest in far-away Finland was contained in a statement yesterday in Abuja by the Director Defence Information (DDI), Brigadier Tukur Gusau whose press release coincided with disclosures yesterday at a defence media briefing by the Director Defence Media Operations (DDMO), Major General Edward Buba, that defiant Nigerian troops, in just one week, ambushed and killed another notorious terrorist, Yau Audi and 115 others in a major crackdown on terror across the country.
The CDS, as Nigeria’s armed forces chief and Chair, ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Defence who has gained immense respect and applause as a tireless advocate for whole-of-society approach to fighting terror in the country and elsewhere across the world, was in complete high spirits yesterday following news on major outlets of the arrest for trial Finland of Simon Ekpa for court trial over terrorism-related activities in Nigeria.
His arrest came just ten days to the December 2, 2024 date he had declared as the day for unveiling the map of a proposed 40 ‘’United States of Biafra’’ and the official declaration of Biafra’s independence. Also, his arrest came a few days after deadly attacks in the Southeast by suspected members of the Eastern Security Network/IPOB allegedly coordinated from his base in Lahti region of Finland.
Convinced of the immediate need to take Ekpa out of the security equation in the Southeast, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) in March this year declared him and 96 other IPOB members wanted for terrorism, violent extremism, and separatist threats against the country.
Director of Defence Information (DDI), Brigadier Tukur Gusau, in a press statement in reaction to Ekpa’s arrest, said that the defence chief was pleased with the development suggesting that the news would motivate troops at the frontlines especially activities of Operation UDO KA in the South East where non-state actors had been literally fought to a standstill since the CDS was appointed in June last year.
According to him, the news of Ekpa’s arrest indicated that the defence defence chief’s dogged advocacy for government of Finland to hand over the separatist campaigner to Nigerian authorities for trial over alleged serial and heinous terrorism crimes committed in the South East through his sit-at-home orders.
Brigadier General Tukur Gusau also expressed the defence chief’s desire for further drastic action on the serious matter by the Finnish authorities towards a possible early extradition to Nigeria of the wanted Ekpa whose violent and extremist pronouncements had continued to heighten disorder, chaos and general insecurity in the South East thereby crippling economic activities of the people of the region.
The CDS had consistently called for necessary diplomatic actions against the government of Finland, saying that Simon Ekpa’s criminal activities would not be possible if Finland takes position. He further argued that allowing Ekpa to coordinate his activities from Finland negated the Finnish government’s good posture before the free world.
He stressed that the Nigerian people and the armed forces were fully united against Ekpa’s serial separatist campaigns flying in the face of the peaceful and entrepreneurial people of the South East through horrendous sit-at-home order issued every Monday, saying such hate pronouncements constituted a gross infringement on the rights and privileges of the Southeast people and the wider global push for peace and order.
Brigadier General Tukur Gusau’s terse statement reads, ‘’The CDS is happy with the arrest in Finland, with the hope this will be a step towards his extradition to Nigeria so that he will face justice’’.
Relatedly, Director Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, at his regular bi-weekly defence briefing said: ‘’The CDS has always called for the arrest of Simon Ekpa following his deep involvement in fueling terrorism in the South East.
‘’We are delighted about his arrest and glad that the international community is partnering with Nigerians in our fight against terrorism’’
It would be recalled that authorities of the Finnish Central Criminal Police, quoted on several news outlets, confirmed the arrest on Thursday, alongside four others over terrorism-related activities, saying, ‘’The detention demands are related to a preliminary investigation in which a Finnish citizen of Nigerian descent, born in the 1980s, is suspected of public incitement to commit a crime with terrorist intent.
Following the arrest, the Finland district court in Lahti ordered the remand of Simon Ekpa on probable cause for public incitement to commit a crime with terrorist intent in Nigeria. He was accused of using social media platforms to spread separatist propaganda linked to IPOB, a group advocating for the secession of the South East from Nigeria.
Finland authorities have also investigated Ekpa in the past for alleged financial crime, including the collection of funds through questionable sources.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian military on Thursday confirmed the death of a notorious terrorist commander Munzur Ya Audu who operated in the North East Zone of the country, just as troops neutralized a total of 115 terrorists in encounters during the week at the various theatres across the country.
A total of 238 terrorists including a Cameroonian identified as a member of Ambazonia freedom fighters were arrested by the troops. The arrest of eight terrorists including the Cameroonian followed a tip-off, on November 12 which led to separate operations in Taraba State. It resulted in interception and arrest of 8 extremists and gun-running syndicate including a notorious kidnapper and the Cameroonian a member of Ambazonia. He was arrested in Kurmi LGAs of Taraba State.
Major General Edward Buba made the disclosures at his bi-weekly defence briefing, adding that 15 alleged crude oil thieves were also arrested while 138 kidnapped hostages were rescued.
He said the aim of the armed forces in the ongoing counter terrorism and counter insurgency war remained detecting and destroying the terrorists and their cohorts whenever they were hiding in the country.
“The military recognizes the need to continue to act and respond forcefully against terrorists. Accordingly, we are collecting intelligence, hunting them and striking locations in which they are confirmed to be hibernating. Furthermore, serious efforts have been emplaced at dismantling the terrorists’ capabilities as well as the terror networks of these groups. Troops are also actively targeting terrorist logistics bases and other structures that have affiliation to terror groups’’, he added.
He said troops in the South South Zone denied oil theft of an estimated sum of Nine Hundred and Twenty One Million Eight Hundred and Forty Seven Thousand One Hundred and Forty Six Naira (N921, 847,146.00) only within the week.
While on the whole, troops recovered 145 assorted weapons and 3,825 assorted ammunition. The breakdown as follows: one GPMG, 2 PKT guns, 68 AK47 rifles, 2 AK56 rifles, 24 fabricated rifles, 28 dane guns, one fabricated revolver pistol, 6 locally made pistols, one pistol, 8 pump action guns, one hand grenade, 4 fabricated hand grenades, one RPG bomb and 3 explosives.
Others are: 2,093 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 246 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 317 rounds of 7.62mm GPMG/PKM ammo, 129 live cartridges, 28 shotgun cartridges, 500 empty case of MG ammo, 147 empty cases of 7.62mm ammo, 3 empty cases of cartridges, 54 magazines, 3 baofeng radios, 3 handheld radios, one bandolier, 12 vehicles, 24 motorcycles, 11 bicycles, 51 mobile phones and the sum of N7, 245, 500.00 only, amongst other items.
Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 78 crude oil cooking ovens, 21 dugout pits, 56 boats, 56 drums, 26 storage tanks and 56 illegal refining sites. Other items recovered include 2 speed boats, one barge, 2 tricycles, one pumping machine, 2 walkie talkie, 2 outboard engines, 9 mobile phones and 12 vehicles among others. Troops recovered 872,070 litres of stolen crude oil and 67,985 litres of illegally refined AGO.
He restated the task before the military saying, “It is clear that troops focus is on fighting terrorists across the country. The Air Force has been striking the terrorist enclaves with air attacks. Troops have also exerted significant military power on areas in which the terrorists are hibernating.
“There is no gainsaying that, we are at war against a cruel and vicious enemy. It is therefore imperative that we degrade their military capability and effectiveness.
‘’Overall, troops are mission focused, prepared and motivated to win the war against terrorism. We recognize that, it is a difficult task and that there would be casualties’’, noting that the military while doing its best possible to minimize casualties regretfully lost five soldiers in North East Zone and three in South East Zone in encounters of the past one week.
‘’On the whole, it is our pride as a force to place ourselves in harm’s way in order to protect our citizens. We are fully committed to defeating all threats in order for citizens to live in a safer and more secure environment. This is the sacrifice we make as a force, for our nation’’, he said.
