The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a fresh statement released on Saturday, said the party is grieved by the death of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and other officers in a military plane crash on Friday.
The party in the statement released by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, describesd Gen. Attahiru and the other officers who died in the military plane crash as heroes who gave their lives for the security of the nation, adding that the tragic incident is a huge blow to Nigeria.
“Our party commiserates with the military high command, the families of Lt. General Attahiru and the other officers and men who have paid the supreme price for the security of our nation and prays God to give them the fortitude to bear the loss,”.
The PDP however demands an extensive inquest into this military plane crash as well as the last two in which lives of officers were lost.
“The party urges Nigerians to be at alert and continue to pray for our fighting men and women, who are risking their lives at the front to secure our nation,” the statement added.
The army officers were killed on May 21, 2021, when their plane crashed near the Kaduna International Airport, an air force spokesman said.
Attahiru was appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari in January in a shakeup of the top military command to better fight surging violence and a more than decade-long jihadist insurgency.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, has directed that an Accident Investigation Board be constituted to unravel the immediate and remote cause of the crash.
Irabor said the Armed Forces of Nigeria remains committed to combatting the security challenges bedevilling the nation. “The sacrifices of our dearly departed heroes will not be in vain,” he said.