The Päijät-Häme District Court in Finland has sentenced a pro-Biafra agitator, Simon Ekpa, to six years in prison for terrorism offences.

In a ruling delivered on Monday, the court found him guilty of inciting terrorism and participating in the activities of a terrorist group.

The court said Ekpa had used his “significant social media following” to stoke tensions in the South-East region of Nigeria between August 2021 and November 2024, a Finnish newspaper, Yle, reported.

According to the newspaper, the court also convicted him of aggravated tax fraud.

The three-member panel of judges, in a unanimous ruling, also stated that Ekpa was an influential member of a militant separatist movement whose goal was to actualise the secession of a Biafran state from Nigeria.

The district court, as reported by Yle, further stated that Ekpa supplied these groups with “weapons, explosives, and ammunition” through his network of contacts in the region, and that he was also found to have encouraged his followers on the social media platform X to “commit crimes” in Nigeria.

A long-term resident of Lahti and one-time local councillor, Ekpa reportedly committed the crimes from the Finnish city, according to the verdict, giving the Finnish court jurisdiction in the case.

He had denied all the charges in court.

However, the district court’s verdict is not final, as it can be appealed to a higher court.

A Major Victory For Nigeria Against Terror,’ FG Welcomes Ekpa’s Conviction

The Federal Government has described the conviction of Simon Ekpa for terrorism-related offences and other charges by a Finnish Court as “a major victory” against terrorism.

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stated this while reacting to Ekpa’s sentencing to six years in prison by the Päijät-Häme District Court in Finland on Monday.

“We welcome the news of Simon Ekpa’s conviction by a Finnish court for terrorism-related crimes and his sentencing to six years in prison. A major victory for the Nigerian people in the collective fight against terror,” Mohammed wrote on his official handle on X.

Ekpa moved to Finland in 2007 as an athlete.

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A High Court in Nairobi, Kenya declared that arrest and rendition of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to Nigeria as illegal.

In a landmark judgement, the judge held that the abduction and detention of Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, in Kenya and his subsequent rendition to Nigeria in June 2021 were unlawful and illegal.

The judgement was delivered by Justice E.C. Mwita.

He held that the actions of both the Kenyan and Nigerian governments amounted to gross violations of Kanu’s fundamental human rights as protected by their respective constitutions.

The IPOB had consistently declared that the ongoing trial of Kanu on terrorism charges would amount to nothing owing to the manner of his rendition to Nigeria.

In the judgement by the Kenyan court, it also awarded Kanu 10 million Kenyan shillings in compensatory damages against the Kenyan government for its role in the unlawful abduction and rendition.

Justice E.C. Mwita said, “Having considered the pleadings and arguments by parties, the decisions relied on, the Constitution and the law, I come to the following conclusions:

“First, the government of Kenya violated the Constitution and Mr. Nnamdi Kanu’s rights and fundamental freedoms. Having entered Kenya lawfully he was subject to the protection offered by the Constitution of Kenya 2010 and the government of Kenya had an obligation to uphold and protect his rights and fundamental freedoms.

“Mr. Nnamdi was, however, abducted, kept in solitude confinement, tortured and denied food and medication, a breach of basic rights. He was chained, humiliated, ridiculed and held in contempt and later forcibly removed from Kenya without following the law in violation of his rights and fundamental freedoms for which the government of Kenya is liable.

“Based on the above conclusions, the court makes the following declarations and orders it considers appropriate: A declaration is hereby issued that the abduction of Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu Kanu; holding him in incommunicado confinement, torturing him and denying him food, water, medication and other basic necessities was a violation of his rights and fundamental freedoms.

“A declaration is hereby issued that the abduction and subsequent forcible removal of Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu-Kanu from Kenya to Nigeria was in violation of the laws of Kenya; his rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of movement and security of the person guaranteed by the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and, therefore, unconstitutional and illegal.

“An order for compensation is hereby issued awarding Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu-Kanu general damages of Kshs 10,000,000 (N119,546,576.79) against the Attorney General of Kenya on behalf of the government of Kenya for the violation of Mr. Nwannekaenvi Nnamdi Kenny Okwu-Kanu’s constitutional rights and fundamental freedoms.”

Reacting to the judgement, the IPOB, through its spokesman, Emma Powerful, said it reinforced its long-held view that Kanu’s rendition to Nigeria was unlawful.

In a statement he issued Friday morning, Powerful described it as a “resounding judicial earthquake that has shaken the legal foundations of the fraudulent rendition of our leader, ONYENDU Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”

He said the group had been vindicated in its stand that what transpired in Nairobi in June 2021 was not extradition but extraordinary rendition.

The IPOB spokesman then declared: “Let it be known that this is not the end. This is the beginning of a global accountability campaign.

“All those responsible — in Kenya, Nigeria, or elsewhere — shall be pursued to the ends of the earth under the universal principle of accountability for crimes against humanity.

“Neither British diplomatic complicity nor cowardly silence from Western powers will shield the perpetrators from the legal, diplomatic, and moral reckoning that is coming.”

While hailing the Kenyan judge for his courage, he said: “To the Nigerian judiciary, let this be a mirror: Justice is not an act of cowardice, but of courage.”

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The ongoing trial of the Leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, on allegations bordering on terrorism and treason has been laid to rest by the federal government.

Representing the federal government, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, announced the verdict on Thursday after the 5th prosecution witness (PW-5), identified as EEE for security reasons, was led in evidence and cross-examined by Kanu’s lawyer, Onyechi Ikpeazu, before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Awomolo told the court that the prosecution was satisfied with the avalanche of evidence tendered, including the broadcast of activities of the leader of the IPOB after calling five witnesses in the trial, adding that the government had sufficiently satisfied the need to close its case.

“I therefore close the case, ” the senior lawyer said.

The lead defence counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi, told the court that they would be opting for a no-case submission, which would be filed in due course

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BONA NAIJA – Former Head of Military Government in Nigeria, General Yakubu Gowon, (Rtd) on Wednesday provided further insight into his leadership of the country. 

Gowon, who appeared on Arise Television, also disclosed that the Biafra civil war was not meant to be against the Igbos. 

The military ruler said he left a clear code that it was a battle against armed Biafra forces and not against women and women. 

According to him, he engaged in the war as the last alternative to keep the country together.  

Gowon, who ruled Nigeria from 1966 to 1975, at the age of 31, said his good upbringing played a role in his position. 

“It was 31 going to 32, and I had a good upbringing from home, school, and military training. I was brought up in a very strict religious environment, so I feel back because I was not prepared to rule Nigeria.

“But I was loyal to my country. I was not trained to rule, but my upbringing helped me to learn how to deal with situations the best way you can.

“But of course, you can’t do it alone. You have other people around you,” he stated.

On the civil war, he had this to say: “I was not aware of a counter coup in 1966, I was unaware until that very night when I was woken up to say something had happened in Abeokuta.

“The war was something we didn’t expect, there were reactions against the unitary system of government. 

“I had a responsibility to keep Nigeria united and I warned that if the situation gets to this stage where I have to choose to align with the break up or the other side, I know where my responsibility is – my loyalty is to the country.

“From the beginning I never wanted the war against the Igbos as such but it was to stop the breaking up of Nigeria.

“So what I did was to give a code of conduct on how the operations were to go, you are not fighting the people, make sure you protect the people, protect the women and their children – only take up arms against those who take arms against you and any distraction against the population that is not correct will be dealt with.

“We tried to send leaflets against the people that the war is not against them.”

WATCH

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The Federal High Court in Abuja has relocated the ongoing trial of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), to the Department of State Services (DSS) headquarters.

Justice James Omotosho ordered the temporary relocation to facilitate an on-site inspection of a shipping container allegedly used by Kanu to import a radio transmitter into Nigeria for broadcasts on Radio Biafra.

Nnamdi Kanu is facing trial for terrorism charges due to his push for the actualization of Biafra. The prosecution alleges that Kanu used the shipping container to smuggle a radio transmitter into the country, which was concealed among household equipment.

The inspection marks a significant development in the high-profile case and could influence the trajectory of the trial. The trial judge and legal teams visited the DSS facility to examine the container, considered central to the allegations against Kanu. Further proceedings are expected to continue after the inspection.

The relocation of the trial to the DSS headquarters highlights the complexities of the case and the need for thorough investigation. The outcome of the inspection and subsequent proceedings will likely have significant implications for Kanu’s trial.

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