Finnish Court Didn’t Approve Simon Ekpa’s Extradition To Nigeria

On Tuesday, some social media users and blog sites made a post claiming that a Finnish court has approved the extradition of Simon Ekpa, the controversial Biafra separatist, from Finland to Nigeria.

The judgment was said to have been delivered at the Päijät-Häme district court in Lahti on April 18, 2025.

The post was widely shared on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and TikTok. The viral post was accompanied by an AI-generated picture showing Ekpa in an attire that appears to be from a prison uniform.

Popular blog sites like Instabloggja and Nigerian Stories published the post.

“Finnish Court Approves Simon Ekpa’s Extradition to Nigeria. Simon Ekpa, the controversial Finnish-Nigerian separatist agitator, will be extradited to Nigeria following a Finnish court ruling on April 18, 2025,” part of the post reads.

Reno Omokri, a former presidential aide, referenced the viral post on Ekpa in a comment published via X on Wednesday.

Daily Times, a national newspaper with about one million followers across social media platforms, also amplified the post about Ekpa’s extradition.

On Wednesday, the newspaper published the picture for its front page for Wednesday’s edition. The picture shows that the viral post on the purported approval of Ekpa’s extradition by a Finnish court was the cover story of the newspaper edition.

Other versions of the viral post have been archived

BACKGROUND

Ekpa was arrested in Finland on November 21, 2024, by law enforcement agents over alleged terrorism.

He was subsequently sent to prison by the district court of Päijät-Häme for “spreading terrorist propaganda on social media”.

Ekpa was said to have committed the crime in 2021 in Lahti municipality.

He is accused of instigating violence and inciting terror in the south-east of Nigeria through his social media pages.

Before his arrest, the controversial Biafra agitator was using his social media platforms, especially on X, to incite violence in the south-east region, especially against security agents and public institutions.

Nigerian authorities have been demanding the extradition of Ekpa, a dual citizen of Finland and Nigeria, for prosecution. However, the effort has not yielded the right result.

Last year, Mikko Laaksonen, the senior detective superintendent at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in Finland, disclosed that a Finnish district court fixed May 2025 for the prosecution to file charges against Ekpa.

Subsequently, Laaksonen said Ekpa would remain in custody until his trial since the alleged offence was not bailable.

Recently, Kaarle Gummerus, Ekpa’s new lawyer, said Ekpa will appear in court in June 2025 to face trial.

VERIFICATION

CableCheck conducted online searches on the websites of Yle, a broadcasting organisation in Finland, and the Päijät Häme district court. There was no credible information suggesting that a Finnish court ordered the extradition of Ekpa to Nigeria.

Although Nigerian authorities have indicated their intention to seek Ekpa’s extradition, it remains unclear whether a formal request has been submitted to Finnish authorities or when extradition proceedings might begin in court.

When CableCheck contacted Gummerus via email, he said no court in Finland has taken such a decision.

“I can confirm to you that no decision has been taken in Finland. I have no information on the matter, so no such decision could have been taken,” the lawyer said.

“I wonder who is spreading such information.”

In an email sent to CableCheck, Laaksonen said Finnish NBI is unaware of any court order about the purported extradition of Ekpa.

“NBI has received similar information from different sources. However, NBI is not aware of any decisions regarding extradition that is related to the investigation in question,” Laaksonen said.

VERDICT

The claim that a Finnish court has ordered the extradition of Ekpa to Nigeria is false.

Source : thecable

Today's praises: Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth

Psalm 100

1

Psalm 100 A psalm. For giving thanks.

1

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

2

Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.

3

Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his ^[1] ; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

4

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.

5

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

 

Today's bible teaching: You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the LORD is their refuge

 Psalm 14

1

Psalm 14 For the director of music. Of David.

1

The fool ^[1] says in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.

2

The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.

3

All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.

4

Will evildoers never learn-- those who devour my people as men eat bread and who do not call on the LORD?

5

There they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous.

6

You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the LORD is their refuge.

7

Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

Today's bible teaching: Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name

 Psalm 97

1

Psalm 97

1

The LORD reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice.

2

Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

3

Fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side.

4

His lightning lights up the world; the earth sees and trembles.

5

The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, before the Lord of all the earth.

6

The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples see his glory.

7

All who worship images are put to shame, those who boast in idols-- worship him, all you gods!

8

Zion hears and rejoices and the villages of Judah are glad because of your judgments, O LORD.

9

For you, O LORD, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.

10

Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

11

Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.

12

Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name.

Today's bible teaching: Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall

 Psalm 55

1

Psalm 55 For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A maskil ^[1] of David.

1

Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea;

2

hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught

3

at the voice of the enemy, at the stares of the wicked; for they bring down suffering upon me and revile me in their anger.

4

My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death assail me.

5

Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me.

6

I said, "Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest--

7

I would flee far away and stay in the desert; Selah

8

I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm."

9

Confuse the wicked, O Lord, confound their speech, for I see violence and strife in the city.

10

Day and night they prowl about on its walls; malice and abuse are within it.

11

Destructive forces are at work in the city; threats and lies never leave its streets.

12

If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were raising himself against me, I could hide from him.

13

But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend,

14

with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship as we walked with the throng at the house of God.

15

Let death take my enemies by surprise; let them go down alive to the grave, ^[2] for evil finds lodging among them.

16

But I call to God, and the LORD saves me.

17

Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.

18

He ransoms me unharmed from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me.

19

God, who is enthroned forever, will hear them and afflict them-- Selah men who never change their ways and have no fear of God.

20

My companion attacks his friends; he violates his covenant.

21

His speech is smooth as butter, yet war is in his heart; his words are more soothing than oil, yet they are drawn swords.

22

Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.

23

But you, O God, will bring down the wicked into the pit of corruption; bloodthirsty and deceitful men will not live out half their days. But as for me, I trust in you.

Today's bible teaching: They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer

 Psalm 78

1

Psalm 78 A maskil ^[1] of Asaph.

1

O my people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth.

2

I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things, things from of old--

3

what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us.

4

We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done.

5

He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our forefathers to teach their children,

6

so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children.

7

Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands.

8

They would not be like their forefathers-- a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him.

9

The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows, turned back on the day of battle;

10

they did not keep God's covenant and refused to live by his law.

11

They forgot what he had done, the wonders he had shown them.

12

He did miracles in the sight of their fathers in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.

13

He divided the sea and led them through; he made the water stand firm like a wall.

14

He guided them with the cloud by day and with light from the fire all night.

15

He split the rocks in the desert and gave them water as abundant as the seas;

16

he brought streams out of a rocky crag and made water flow down like rivers.

17

But they continued to sin against him, rebelling in the desert against the Most High.

18

They willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved.

19

They spoke against God, saying, "Can God spread a table in the desert?

20

When he struck the rock, water gushed out, and streams flowed abundantly. But can he also give us food? Can he supply meat for his people?"

21

When the LORD heard them, he was very angry; his fire broke out against Jacob, and his wrath rose against Israel,

22

for they did not believe in God or trust in his deliverance.

23

Yet he gave a command to the skies above and opened the doors of the heavens;

24

he rained down manna for the people to eat, he gave them the grain of heaven.

25

Men ate the bread of angels; he sent them all the food they could eat.

26

He let loose the east wind from the heavens and led forth the south wind by his power.

27

He rained meat down on them like dust, flying birds like sand on the seashore.

28

He made them come down inside their camp, all around their tents.

29

They ate till they had more than enough, for he had given them what they craved.

30

But before they turned from the food they craved, even while it was still in their mouths,

31

God's anger rose against them; he put to death the sturdiest among them, cutting down the young men of Israel.

32

In spite of all this, they kept on sinning; in spite of his wonders, they did not believe.

33

So he ended their days in futility and their years in terror.

34

Whenever God slew them, they would seek him; they eagerly turned to him again.

35

They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer.

36

But then they would flatter him with their mouths, lying to him with their tongues;

37

their hearts were not loyal to him, they were not faithful to his covenant.

38

Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. Time after time he restrained his anger and did not stir up his full wrath.

39

He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return.

40

How often they rebelled against him in the desert and grieved him in the wasteland!

41

Again and again they put God to the test; they vexed the Holy One of Israel.

42

They did not remember his power-- the day he redeemed them from the oppressor,

43

the day he displayed his miraculous signs in Egypt, his wonders in the region of Zoan.

44

He turned their rivers to blood; they could not drink from their streams.

45

He sent swarms of flies that devoured them, and frogs that devastated them.

46

He gave their crops to the grasshopper, their produce to the locust.

47

He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore-figs with sleet.

48

He gave over their cattle to the hail, their livestock to bolts of lightning.

49

He unleashed against them his hot anger, his wrath, indignation and hostility-- a band of destroying angels.

50

He prepared a path for his anger; he did not spare them from death but gave them over to the plague.

51

He struck down all the firstborn of Egypt, the firstfruits of manhood in the tents of Ham.

52

But he brought his people out like a flock; he led them like sheep through the desert.

53

He guided them safely, so they were unafraid; but the sea engulfed their enemies.

54

Thus he brought them to the border of his holy land, to the hill country his right hand had taken.

55

He drove out nations before them and allotted their lands to them as an inheritance; he settled the tribes of Israel in their homes.

56

But they put God to the test and rebelled against the Most High; they did not keep his statutes.

57

Like their fathers they were disloyal and faithless, as unreliable as a faulty bow.

58

They angered him with their high places; they aroused his jealousy with their idols.

59

When God heard them, he was very angry; he rejected Israel completely.

60

He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent he had set up among men.

61

He sent [the ark of] his might into captivity, his splendor into the hands of the enemy.

62

He gave his people over to the sword; he was very angry with his inheritance.

63

Fire consumed their young men, and their maidens had no wedding songs;

64

their priests were put to the sword, and their widows could not weep.

65

Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, as a man wakes from the stupor of wine.

66

He beat back his enemies; he put them to everlasting shame.

67

Then he rejected the tents of Joseph, he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim;

68

but he chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which he loved.

69

He built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth that he established forever.

70

He chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens;

71

from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance.

72

And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them.

Peter Obi Speaks On The Closure Of Company By UK Government

Verify, not falsify facts, Obi-Datti Media speaks on Next International (UK) Ltd.

In order that the huge human and material resources deployed to search and locate any negative against the high flying Labour Party Presidential Candidate, Peter Obi is not seen to have been wasted, anything could be concocted to justify the efforts.

We have watched with bemused skepticism as agents of the political opposition unsettled by the high rising profile of the Labour Party flag bearer, ran around and made fools of themselves over the Next International (UK) Limited being removed from the record in 2021.  

Ordinarily, this is the type of mischief and impishness that should deserve no response but for the credulous in our midst who are the real target by this impairment.

For the record, the entity was 99% owned by Next Nigeria International Ltd. and established as its buying office in the 90s and Peter Obi was its CEO. At the time Peter Obi became governor of Anambra State in 2006, his wife assumed management of the winding down of the company and about one year ago requested that the company be dissolved under the voluntary strike off of the entity on grounds of dissolution and being  inoperational, which is  normal in winding up an entity.  

Peter Obi has consistently maintained that he is no longer involved in any Next  related business. 

When our Principal insists that you go and verify facts about him and the information he dishes out, it didn’t say go and falsify facts. 

The LP candidate by his antecedents in Anambra State for eight years, in private ventures where he held sway his records among the pack in this race for the Presidency, puts him  miles ahead in moral rating.

Signed.

Diran Onifade

Head of Media 

Obi-Datti Media Office.

Obasanjo, GEJ, Osinbajo & Ernest Koroma attend opening of CoDA(Photos)

Former president and Chair, Coalition for Dialogue on Africa (CoDA) Obasanjo, Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, former President of Sierra Leone, Ernest Bai Koroma, and other notable leaders, reflected deeply on some of the challenges we're facing in the West African sub-region with a view to mapping out ways to overcome them at the opening of a CoDA High-level Dialogue with the theme: West Africa: Rising to the Challenge of Consolidating Democratic Goverance holding at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) Abeokuta, Ogun State Nigeria. 

They spoke against coups in Africa and also reiterated that the development is a threat to democracy in the continent

Mbaka Attacks Buhari:'The Jets You're Buying Will Be Used To Collapse Nigeria'(Video)

https://youtu.be/FqEc4UrFMxY

Over the weekend, Father Mbaka blasted Buhari and told him that the jets he is buying to kill the citizens will be used to collapse Nigeria. He boldly told Buhari that there are no need to spend money buying jets. Instead, he should build more industries for the youths. He urged him to address the causes of agitations in Nigeria instead of buying jets to kill the citizens.

Watch video on the link above

Member of House of Reps, Lado disburses fifty million naira to his political loyalists(Photos)

Earlier this morning Member House of Representatives Representing Suleja /Tafa And Gurara federal constituency Hon Abubakar Lado Suleja Disbursed Fifty million Naira to His Loyalists.

Lado said It was necessary for him to pay loyalty with royalty. He thanked all the beneficiaries of this gesture for their patience and loyalty.

Hon Lado Suleja called on the beneficiaries to judiciously utilised the money for their own good. 

The cash disbursements were given to beneficiaries as follows;

1. One million Naira

2. Five Hundred Thousand Naira

3. Three Hundred Thousand Naira

4. Two Hundred Thousand Naira

Obaseki leads PDP Governors on thank you visit to Benin monarch Oba Ewuare(Photos)

The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki on Tuesday, led his counterparts on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on a thank you visit to the Benin Monarch, His Royal Majesty Omo N’ Oba N’ Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, Ewuare II.

The governors include: Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Aminu Tambuwal of Sokotoand Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State.

Accompanying the governors are chieftains of the PDP including the PDP Vice National Chairman, South South, Chief Dan Orbih, and the Edo State Chairman of the party, Dr. Anthony Aziegbemi.

In his remark during the visit, the Rivers State Governor and Chairman of PDP National Campaign Council for Edo gubernatorial election, Nyesom Wike, expressed appreciation to the Oba of Benin, for his timely intervention and prayers which contributed to the peaceful conduct of the September 19 governorship election in the state, in which Governor Obaseki was re-elected on the platform of the PDP.

Wike said that the peace meeting convened by the Benin Monarch on September 2, 2020 and his fervent prayers for peace contributed immensely to the successful conduct of the governorship election.

Governor Obaseki expressed appreciation to Oba Ewuare II for the warm reception and assured that his administration will serve the interest of Edo people who gave him the mandate for a second term as governor.

On his part, HRM Oba Ewuare II thanked the PDP governors for the honour accorded him and congratulated Governor Obaseki on his election victory.

He commended the political parties and their candidates who participated in the election for respecting the Benin Traditional Institution by honouring the peace meeting.

The Benin monarch urged Governor Obaseki to be magnanimous in victory, and called for support for the governor.

He urged the PDP governors and chieftains to work with the Edo State Governor as partners.

PDP Election Review Committee Strategize, Meet OBJ,GEJ,IBB,David Mark & Ekweremadu (Photos)

His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Bauchi State Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed led members of committee of the PDP 2019 General Election Review on an advocacy visit to the former Presidents of Nigeria, Chief Olesugun Obasanjo,IBB, Goodluck Jonathan; Ekweremadu and David Mark.

The delegation includes former governors Sule Lamido of Jigawa, Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, former Minister of Special Duties and Chairman PDP ministers forum Tanimu Turaki,DanMasanin Gwandu (SAN) among others.

The visit  is in line with the committee's quest to meet with  critical stakeholders especially statesmen of the party for their inputs and suggestions as well as suggestions in line with their terms of reference. It will also help the party to strategize ahead of next presidential election.