The Finnish authorities has assured Nigeria of collaboration on the case of the factional chief of the separatist Indigenous People of Biafra, Simon Ekpa, who resides in Finland.
Finland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Elina Valtonen, offered this assurance throughout a press briefing in Abuja, on Tuesday.
Ekpa, who resides in Finland, leads a faction of IPOB generally known as Autopilot, which has been pushing for the creation of an impartial state of Biafra, encompassing Nigeria’s South-East and elements of the South-South areas.
He can be alleged to have performed a key function in instigating violence in Nigeria, significantly via the enforcement of a controversial sit-at-home order and different assaults focusing on safety personnel.
Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, had on Tuesday engaged in high-level discussions with the Foreign Ministers of Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and in addition to representatives from Norway and Denmark.
The delegation consists of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden, Tobias Billström; the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Ms Elina Valtonen; Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland; Ms Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir; the State Secretary for International Development, Norway, Bjørg Sandkjær, and Under Secretary for Foreign Policy, Denmark, Eva Marie Frida Barløse.
Tuggar, after the dialogue with the 5 nordic delegates confirmed that Ekpa difficulty was a central subject in his discussions with Valtonen.
“It was a priority. There is no way Nigeria would engage with Finland without raising the issue of Simon Ekpa vociferously,” Tuggar mentioned.
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Valtonen reaffirmed Finland’s dedication to working with Nigeria on the matter.
She emphasised that the case was being dealt with via Finland’s judicial system, which operates strictly in accordance with the rule of regulation.
“If you imply a selected one who is working in Finland in a not very, say, constructive method, then certainly we’ve got taken this up and mentioned this with the Nigerian authorities in full collaboration.
“And the complete course of is inside our judicial system, and in Finland, which operates very strictly by the rule of regulation, comparable to we see that Nigeria is doing as nicely.
“It is not a political question, but it is a question to the judicial system, and both our judicial systems do collaborate on this matter, and we hope that we will be able to close it soon,” Valtonen said.
The go to of the 5 Nordic ministers was the primary of its type outdoors of Europe.