The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) says it is not interested in Nigeria’s 2023 general election.
In a statement on Monday by Emma Powerful, its publicity secretary, the group also denied its involvement in an attack on the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Imo state.
The statement read partly, “We, the global family and movement of the Indigenous People of Biafra, under the command and leadership of the great liberator Mazi Nnamdi Okwuchukwu Kanu, wish to disassociate ourselves from the recent attacks on INEC office in Owerri Imo State.
“Neither IPOB nor ESN operatives has anything to do with Nigeria fraud elections in 2023. We have never supported nor involved ourselves in any election obstruction or violence as a movement. The only actions we can take is to call our people to boycott voting if the need arises. But as of today, IPOB is not interested in Nigeria and its electoral activities and have never asked anyone to carry out any attack on our behalf.
“For the Nigeria government and her compromised police to link IPOB and ESN to their sponsored attacks on INEC offices has shown that they are deluded, misguided, deceitful, and don’t know the norms on which IPOB operations. Nigeria government and her security agencies are working day and night to blackmail IPOB self-determination movement. They sponsor criminals to attack government facilities so they can rush to media to blame the attacks on IPOB and ESN without investigation.
“There has never been anytime that Nigeria Police carried out any public inquiry on all the numerous attacks and arsons that they blamed IPOB for. It’s obvious that Nigeria police have lost every professional ethics and are completely irredeemable, so we call for Nigeria to be balkanized so that progressive Nations will emerge to form responsive and responsible government entities like upright police institutions.
“ESN operatives never attacked INEC office because we are not interested in this Nigeria’s forthcoming election in 2023. Any one or group blaming IPOB or ESN for any attack on INEC facilities is under the influence of some powerful drugs. IPOB will not spare anybody using our name to disrupt election, and no body should link us with those who are destroying election materials.”
It added further that the attackers of public facilities were solely doing so to smear the image of the group.
