One of Nnamdi Kanu’s lawyers and human rights activist, Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has described the conviction of Simon Ekpa by a District Court in Finland as a historic lesson against fraud, violence and deceit. In a strongly worded statement on Monday September 1 2025 Ejiofor said the judgment did not come as a surprise to him insisting that Ekpa’s fraudulent empire built on lies and exploitation was destined to collapse.
He said the conviction of Simon Ekpa did not surprise him as he had long understood the weight of his infractions, the weakness of his defence and the inevitable collapse of the empire he built on lies violence and exploitation. Ejiofor recounted how Ekpa from the beginning attempted to usurp the authority of the Directorate of State of the Indigenous People of Biafra aided by individuals determined to derail the genuine struggle for self determination. He explained that Ekpa’s deadly declarations recklessly amplified across media platforms were swallowed by vulnerable and misguided elements.
According to him Ekpa’s so called foot soldiers would deny links to him or his Biafra Liberation Army when arrested instead claiming to be IPOB members, a deception that gave the Nigerian state excuses to brutalise peaceful agitators and tarnish IPOB’s global reputation. Ejiofor revealed that he consistently warned against Ekpa’s activities despite being vilified and branded a saboteur. He said Ekpa built his criminal empire on deceit harvesting money from gullible followers while fabricating lies about warships fighter jets and dates of Biafra independence that never came to pass.
He lamented that some educated elites defended Ekpa or remained silent out of fear or complicity while youths in Igbo land paid with their lives. He further noted that IPOB’s leadership under the DOS repeatedly distanced itself from Ekpa’s violent approach but was undermined by covert support from certain individuals who are now calling for his head. Ejiofor stressed that Ekpa’s conviction in Finland shows that lies and violence cannot sustain any legitimate struggle. He said it demonstrates that no amount of lies propaganda or fraudulent appeals to self determination can shield a criminal enterprise built on fraud bloodshed and deception.
He dismissed claims that the conviction upheld Ekpa’s right to self determination, clarifying that the court never upheld any such right because his trial and conviction were never about self determination but about fraud deception and actions that funded violence. Ejiofor condemned the human toll of Ekpa’s actions noting that many of his misguided followers remain in detention or have been killed. He asked what would happen to the thousands of lives wasted as a result of Ekpa’s poisonous preachings whose parents and families remain in pain. He also accused some lawyers of abandoning victims while secretly hobnobbing with Ekpa.
The lawyer urged Ndigbo to reject criminality fraud and emotional manipulation in their pursuit of justice and self determination. He said it is time for stock taking and time to reject fraud and blackmail as tools of agitation. He warned that though Ekpa may be convicted the scars of his deceit and the devastation he left behind will take years to cleanse from Ala Igbo. He concluded that no legitimate struggle for liberation can be built on deceit fraud and violence against one’s own people and that those who still glorify Ekpa or follow his path are not freedom fighters but merchants of death. Ejiofor prayed for divine guidance asking Chukwu Okike Abiama to deliver the land and guide the people into light wisdom and peace.
