For Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, lawyer to the detained leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, the battle to free Orafite Clan in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State from the imperialism of his kinsman, Emeka Offor is a battle of no retreat, no surrender.
Consequently, the face-off between them deepened on Tuesday as Ejiofor shed light on why Offor who he described as Emperor of Orafite is after him.
Ejiofor was reacting to the allegation raised by Vincent Dike, Manager of Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), a company in which Emeka Offor holds controlling shares, and which defamed his character.
Contrary to claims, the IPOB lawyer in a statement said his offence was that he condemned the abduction of a young boy, Ebuka Atuigwe, by Dike, using the Oraifite Local Vigilante.
Ejiofor said, “I have received numerous calls and text messages from professional colleagues, well-meaning Nigerians, friends, and well-wishers regarding a sponsored press conference organized by Vincent Dike and a few individuals, targeted at tarnishing my hard-earned reputation and image. I would like to address this matter and provide a response, while most of the offending publications shall be addressed at the appropriate forum.
“It is important to highlight the roles and positions of the individuals who specifically called for the press conference at an odd day of the month in the guise of holding a Town Hall meeting of the community, to gravely defame me; as well as to set the records straight:
“Vincent Dike is a manager at EEDC, a company in which Emeka Offor holds controlling shares. He also leads a sectional town union body in Oraifite known as the Oraifite Improvement Union (OIU). OIU, well-known in our community, as Emeka Offor’s special purpose vehicle, under his complete control. He selects and installs their successive leaders, pays their salaries, and sponsors their activities in Oraifite. I am not a member of OIU; instead, I belong to another town union body called Oraifite Development Union (ODU), a reputable organization within our community dedicated to the development and unity of Oraifite.
“My main disagreement with Mr. Vincent Dike, a manager at EEDC and spokesperson for Emeka Offor, arose when he oversaw the abduction of an innocent young boy, Mr. Ebuka Atuigwe, using the Oraifite Local Vigilante. I became involved when the parents of Mr. Ebuka Atuigwe could not locate their son after searching various police stations, including the Oraifite Area Command Headquarters. When I asked Mr. Vincent Dike about the boy’s whereabouts, he claimed the boy was being interrogated by the Anambra Vigilante Services (AVG), which I found to be implausible.
“I insisted that the boy who had been abducted since September 4 2023, should be taken to a police station where his parents could at least have access to him; and/or charge him to court if he had committed any offence known to law. Following the failure and/or refusal of Vincent Dike and his cohorts to do any of the above, I filed a fundamental rights suit on behalf of Mr. Ebuka Atuigwe at the Nnewi High Court in Suit No: HN/MISC.138/2023. Mr. Vincent Dike and his pay master – the emperor of Oraifite, were irked and ostensibly embarrassed by the mere fact that his name as the PG of OIU was captioned in the civil suit, which development attracted so much criticism against me during their December Annual General Meeting, when Mr. Vincent Dike and the emperor of Oraifite took their turns to insult me and said all manner of unprintable things against me and equally threatened to deal decisively with me.
“Dr. Daniel Udorji, who represented himself at the press conference as the Traditional Ruler of Oraifite, is the dethroned Igwe of Oraifite, legally and legitimately removed by the High Court of Nnewi in June 2023. The Court of Appeal in Awka, Anambra State, has issued an order restraining him from parading himself as Igwe Oraifite. He currently finds protection and recognition in the hands of Emeka Offor, without which he would remain irrelevant in our community.
“Other hirelings present at the purported press briefing or town hall meeting, are all Emeka Offor’s praise singers and cronies. However, I want to make it unequivocally clear that the opinions expressed in the sponsored press briefing against me, do not represent the views of the entire community, nor do they even represent the opinion of 2 per cent of the entire Oraifite citizens/indigenes. The offensive comments in the release represent the limited opinion of those few individuals fully sponsored by Emeka Offor for this hatchet job.
“I wish to emphasize that my character and person do not align with the names I was called during the press briefing. I am an internationally renowned lawyer and human rights activist who has consistently fought against social ills in the society and fiercely defended the oppressed, particularly in our community where Emeka Offor wields significant influence.
“Oraifite community is structured in a way that challenging Emeka Offor, who has assumed the position of an emperor, is not tolerated. Those who do so are visited by security agencies at his behest and often end up in prison. A well-respected South African businessman and social crusader, Comrade Bonny Okonkwo, is currently in prison for expressing views on a community WhatsApp platform that the emperor of Oraifite found derogatory. Oraifite community is under siege by the emperor of Oraifite.
“As a lawyer, my role is to advocate and defend clients in court once my services are retained. It is evident that I do not support or encourage any form of criminal conduct or activities in my community or the state at large. I invite the media to visit my social media platforms (Facebook and Twitter), where they will find numerous publications unequivocally condemning criminal activities in the entire South East and calling on security agencies to address these issues in accordance with the law.
“These publications were made even when nobody dared to raise his or her voice openly against the evil monsters kidnapping and killing our people in the southeast. These publications have attracted visible threats to my life and that of my family. These publications were variously made on 5th Day of December 2022, 15th and 16th August 2023.
“The main sponsor of the criminal gangs who is now on bed with the emperor of Oraifite – once openly declared from Finland, that his criminal gangs should kill me anytime I set foot in Biafran land. It is on record. The individuals who delivered this speech were in exile at the time when I was fighting these criminals using my voice and platforms. The evidence is abundant, and the intelligence community is also aware of these publications.
“The events that played out on Sunday were a sponsored attempt to blackmail and defame me. I assure those who made offensive and defamatory comments of and concerning my person, that we shall address this matter in court soonest. It is a matter of public knowledge that days leading up to February 4 2024, I raised alarms through various publications and petitions to the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of State Security Services, the National Security Adviser, the Executive Governor of Anambra State, the Attorney General of the Federation, and the National President of the Nigerian Bar Association.
“I accused Emeka Offor of proactive clandestine plots already concluded to assassinate me, backed up with verifiable facts which I chose not to make public at the time. Despite the seriousness and weight of these allegations, Emeka Offor did not publicly address them, but instead quickly procured his associates to defame me, a person known not only in our community but also globally for my impeccable character.
“Throughout my life, I have never supported, sponsored, or in any way promoted criminal activities in my community, State, or Nigeria as a whole, or anywhere else. On the contrary, I have actively fought against unrest and insecurity. I can confidently state that the press release I issued on behalf of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu , on November 4 and 5 2021, before the Anambra state governorship election, specifically calling off the then Election boycott when the tension in Anambra was at it peaks, ultimately led to the peaceful conduct of the election and the emergence of Prof. Charles Soludo as Governor, was a significant turning point. There is no instance in any of my statements, actions or activities where I have encouraged or supported criminal activities.
“May I once again, categorically state that I have no criminal record and have never been involved in any form of crime anywhere in or outside Nigeria. Every defamatory comment will be addressed through the appropriate channels, which process has already commenced. Therefore, I urge all Nigerians and people of good conscience to disregard the baseless allegations made by Mr. Vincent Dike during his tailored speech in the sponsored press briefing.
“The world is aware of the prejudices I have so far suffered in the hands of these marauders who had made several visible attempts to eliminate me, but God frustrated all their plans, though those attempts succeeded in inflicting severe injuries and consequently led to the death of dear loved ones around me. The intelligence community is aware of those behind these activities, and they are now speaking through their proxies. In the coming days, I shall reveal more shocking revelations supported by evidence. The time to eradicate evil in our land is long overdue, and I am committed to this cause!”