The House of Representatives has postponed its National Security Summit scheduled to hold from Monday, May 24, 2021.
The decision was to honour the late Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant-General Ibrahim Attahiru, and ten other Military Officers and Men that died in an air mishap on Friday.
The security summit scheduled to find solutions to the numerous security challenges facing the nation, will now begin on Wednesday, May 26, 2021.
A statement signed by the Clerk to the House of Representatives, Mr. Chinedu Francis Akubueze said “The House shares in the grief and sorrow of the families of the late top military officers and prayed that the Almighty God will grant them eternal rest.
It should be noted that the postponement became necessary as the late Army Chief was one of the major stakeholders that would have taken part in the summit.”
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, had in a statement described as shocking and sad the death of the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru, and ten others in a plane crash on Friday evening in Kaduna.
Mr. Gbajabiamila also said the death of the Army Chief was unfortunate coming at a time that the Nigerian military was finding solutions to the security challenges in the country.
He said “Having taken over from the immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, a couple of months ago, Attahiru has shown a lot of commitment in tackling the security situation in the country.”
Mr. Gbajabiamila, said the Nigerian military, especially the Nigeria Army, has lost a dedicated and committed senior officer whose services to fatherland will be sorely missed.
The Deputy Speaker of the House Alh. Ahmed Idris Wase, in a statement said he was pained by the tragic loss of the gallant officers who have served the nation with honour and dignity.
“The death of Chief Of Army Staff is a painful loss especially at a time when he is putting in his best in finding a solution to the security challenges bedeviling the country.” Wase added.
The Minority Caucus in the House has expressed shock over the Friday crash which claimed the lives of the Chief of Army Staff and ten other gallant officers.
In a statement the Caucus said it was grief-stricken by this huge tragedy which has befallen the country, demanding for a full scale investigation into the unfortunate incident.
Minority Leader, Mr. Ndudi Elumelu said “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.”
The Caucus also calls for a system wide investigation into the cause of the crash as well as the last two crashes of military planes which also led to the loss of lives of gallant and promising officers.
Nnenna.O
