Simon Ekpa: The ball is in the court of the judiciary – Minister of Finland

The Finnish government said on Tuesday that legal proceedings must be exhausted before Simon Ekpa, a leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), can be extradited from the Nordic country.

Simon Ekpa has instigated violence against the Nigerian government and called for the secession of Biafra from Nigeria in various videos and online posts.

The Nigerian government has repeatedly called for his extradition from Finland, where he resides, to face charges in Nigeria.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja during the visit of foreign ministers from five Nordic countries, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen assured that the legal case involving Simon Ekpa will be closed very soon.

He stressed that Ekpa’s case was not considered political but judicial and that Finland, being a democracy that respects the rule of law, would have preferred to wait until the case against the Biafran leader was tried in court before taking action against him.

He said that “the case against the person in question is a judicial matter that must take its course.”

However, he said that the judicial obstacle must first be removed.

He said: “If you mean a specific person who is operating in Finland in a not very, let’s say, constructive way, then we have actually addressed that issue and discussed it with the Nigerian authorities in full cooperation.

“And the whole process takes place within our own judicial system and in Finland, which operates very strictly according to the rule of law, as we also see Nigeria doing.

“This is not a political issue, but it is a judicial system issue, and both of our judicial systems are working together on this issue, and we hope to be able to close it soon.

The other Nordic ministers present at the meeting are Tobias Billström, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden, Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, Bjørg Sandkjær, State Secretary for International Development, Norway and Eva Marie Frida Barløse, State Secretary for Foreign Policy, Denmark.

All the ministers said they were in Nigeria to increase trade with their countries and considered Nigeria an important partner.

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