Indigenous People of Biafra has denied being responsible for the death of a former aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Ahmed Gulak.
The group said it had nothing in common with Gulak and should not have killed him. It added that IPOB does not spill blood and is not a terrorist organisation.
Gulak was shot dead by gunmen while on his way to Sam Mbakwe Airport in Owerri, Imo State on Sunday.
There have been controversies over the culprits. Nigeria intelligence community accused IPOB of being responsible but the state Police Command refuted the claim.
It said through the state Police Command spokesman, Bala Elkana that armed bandits murdered the Gulak.
The command, however, later retracted its earlier claim on bandits being responsible for the murder and blamed the death of the former presidential aide on men of the Eastern Security Network.
Men of the ESN, a local security outfit set up by IPOB, were alleged to have waylaid and assassinated Gulak at Obiangwu Junction at Ngor-Okpala Local Government Area of Imo State.
But responding to the claim, IPOB said through its spokesman, Emma Powerful: “The attention of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) ably led by our great leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has been drawn to the untenable allegation by the security agencies that IPOB was responsible for the assassination of former presidential aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Ahmed Gulak on his way to Sam Mbakwe Airport Owerri Imo State.
“We, therefore, state without equivocations that IPOB knows nothing about the said assassination. We had nothing in common with Gulak and could not have killed him.
“This is purely a smokescreen to justify their long-awaited plan to declare another special military operation in the Eastern region to kill more innocent Biafrans.
“IPOB is not a terrorist organization and does not spill blood.
“For us, connecting with the assassination of Gulak is simply to pitch the East against the core Islamic North as a cover and justification for another round of pogrom against Easterners living in the North. “We are only after the restoration of Biafra. Assassination of politicians is not part of our agenda.”
