Minority Caucus of the House of Representatives has described as a huge tragedy, the crash of the military aircraft resulting in the death of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and 10 other military officers.
The Reps members called for a probe into the crash which happened on Friday in Kaduna, as well as a probe into the cause of the two other military planes that crashed recently.
In a statement on Saturday signed by the Minority Leader of the House, Ndudi Elumelu the Caucus said:
“The Minority caucus is grief-stricken by this huge tragedy which has befallen our dear nation and we demand a full-scale investigation into the unfortunate incident.
“Gen. Attahiru and the other officers were very courageous and patriotic soldiers, who gave all in the defence of our dear fatherland.
“The minority caucus charges the military not to be weighed down by the tragic event but to remain focused and undeterred so as to ensure that the heroes did not die in vain.
“Our caucus calls for a system-wide investigation into the cause of the crash as well as the last two crashes of our military planes which also led to the loss of lives of our gallant and promising officers.
“As representatives of the people, we stand with the Army, the entire military as well as the families of the Chief of Army Staff and other gallant officers and men who have paid the supreme price in service to secure our nation.
“Our caucus prays to God to console them at this hour of grief. We urge the Federal Government to take urgent steps to ensure the safety of our fighting men and women, who are daily putting their lives on the line for the security of our nation.”
This is even as the Reps Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila and the House Committee on Air Force have also lamented the death of COAS and other officers that perished with him.
In a statement by his media aide, Lanre Lasisi, the Speaker described Attahiru’s death as unfortunate, saying that it came at a time the Nigerian military was finding solutions to the security challenges in the country.
According to him, the late COAS within the few months he served as army chief showed a lot of commitment in tackling the security situation in the country.
Gbajabiamila regretted that the Nigerian military, especially the Nigeria Army, lost a dedicated and committed senior officer whose services to fatherland would be sorely missed.
He sent his condolences to President Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian military and the Attahiru family over the loss and prayed for the repose of the souls of the soldiers.
In its response to the tragic occurrence, the House Committee on Airforce said the death was painful and shocking
In a statement by the Committee Chairman, Shehu Koko, read: “The news of the crash is still a shock to me as I am aware of his hard work and tour to states across the Federation in a bid to find a lasting solution to the security challenges facing the country.”
He added, “It is unfortunate that this is coming at a time when the country’s service chiefs are doing everything possible to win the war against insurgency in Nigeria
“This is painful and shocking, as I condole with President Muhammadu Buhari, the Military, Nigerian Army and Airforce.”