The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has refuted allegations that its members or the Eastern Security Network (ESN) are responsible for recent attacks on security operatives in the Southeast. In a statement released by its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, the group emphasized that the ESN was established solely to counter terrorists posing as herdsmen in the region, not to engage with Nigerian security forces.
IPOB maintained that since the ESN’s inception in December 2020, its operatives have adhered strictly to their mandate of safeguarding the forests, bushes, and people of the South East. The group attributed the recent spate of killings in the region to the terrorists they were formed to combat, whom they accuse of widespread violence against both security personnel and defenseless communities across Nigeria.
The group also accused the Nigerian government of tacitly supporting these criminals by failing to hold them accountable. IPOB insisted that their movement remains non-violent and peaceful, stressing that if they ever decided to take up arms, the world would be aware of it.
