| Tinubu calls for probe
By PHILIP NWOSU
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
 |
•Senator
Ahmed Tinubu
PIX: Sun News Publishing
|
| |
The governor of Lagos State, Senator Ahmed Tinubu, has described
the crash of the Dornier 228 Nigerian Air Force aircraft,
in which a generation of senior Nigerian Army officers perished,
as a shame to the managers of the country’s resources.
The governor spoke during a condolence visit to family of
the late General Officer Commanding 81 Division of the Nigerian
Army, Major General Joseph Adesunloye, who died in the NAF
033 flight.
Tinubu said that the military aircraft was supposed to be
the safest for anybody traveling, regretting that in Nigeria
the reverse is the case.
He called for a high level probe to enable government get
to the root of the disaster, insisting that the crash should
not be swept under the carpet.
His words: "You ask the nation, where is our money? Where
is our wealth? What is happening to us? What must happen is
a high level of probe to give us some answers, give us good
believable reasons why this has happened and what to do to
prevent it. You can not bring those lives back. Like I said,
this is the wealth of our country, custodians of our national
security and they are well exposed in disaster, the investment
the country has put in their lives cannot just be swept away
in the crash."
Tinubu described the incident, in which 10 Major Generals
(two star generals), including two GOCs died, as a monumental
disaster, insisting that efforts should be made to check the
frequency of air disasters in the country.
His admonition came just as the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) revealed
that it has commenced investigations to unravel the mystery
behind the crash of the Dornier 228 on its fleet.
The Air Force spokesman, Group Captain Emeka Ozoemena, in
statement said investigation was underway, calling on Nigerians
with useful information or evidence that would assist in the
investigation to contact its headquarters in Abuja.
He told Daily Sun on phone that the only two NAF personnel
in the plane survived the crash, but one died on the way to
the hospital.
The Air Force statement came just as former Chief of Defence
Staff, General Alexander Ogomudia (retd) spoke on the condition
of the ill-fated plane, insisting that, "this aircraft
is good, at least it has flown me to Niger, Ghana and Senegal
and virtually all the states in Nigeria during my tenure as
the CDS."
General Ogomudia said it was wrong for anybody to insinuate
that the officers where going for something other that what
would benefit the army, as they were on a mission to improve
the force.
He said: "The meeting of officers is normal because they
were going to Obudu for nothing other than to brainstorm on
the future of the Army. It was a policy decision that the
officers should travel for this assignment and non of them
could say no because what they were going for was for the
good of the country. It was a national assignment."
The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Andrew Azazi,
who was represented by the Commandant of the Nigerian Army
Engineers, Major General Mohammed Saleh, lamented the crash,
but added that the aircraft was worthy at the time of the
incident and the pilots competent.
He described the crash as an act of God, urging the Almighty
God to grant the family the fortitude to bear the loss.
General Saleh hinted that the officers would be paid their
full benefit, "because they died in active service. They
would be paid both normal and death benefit."
|
