Finland debunks arrest threat against Ekpa

The Embassy of Finland in Nigeria has refuted a letter making the rounds that the Finnish Government warned Finland-based Biafra agitator, Simon Ekpa, to desist from his clamour for the actualisation of Biafra republic or risk arrest and prosecution for terrorism.

The clarification was contained in a statement made available to our correspondent on Thursday.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had Tuesday summoned the Finnish Ambassador to Nigeria, Leena Pylvanainen, over alleged hate speech and inciting comments credited to the Ekpa-led faction of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra.

The group had reportedly ordered sit-at-home and also declared that elections will not be allowed to be held in the South-East region.

However, the Finnish embassy in its statement said that the letter did not originate from Helsinki.

It read, “This is to inform you that the attached letter purporting to be signed by the Prime Minister of Finland and currently circulating widely in the media does not originate from the Finnish government.

“We have reported the Twitter message with which this fake letter was originally distributed and asked Twitter to remove it. Regrettably, copies continue circulating in social media and on various internet platforms.

“The Embassy would greatly appreciate it if you could take this information into account in your reporting.”

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