Ondo air crash: Nigeria owes fallen officers debt of gratitude – Shettima

Vice-President Kashim Shettima has said Nigeria owes an enduring debt of gratitude to officers who died in Monday’s Nigerian Air Force aircraft crash in Ondo State, assuring their families that the Federal Government would continue to stand by them beyond the period of national mourning.

Shettima, in a statement issued on Tuesday by Stanley Nkwocha, his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communications, described the crash as a painful national loss, saying the sacrifice of the deceased in service to the country would never be forgotten.

“Thirty-two of our compatriots left on a routine mission in the service of their country. They were colleagues, friends and comrades. But beyond the uniforms they wore and the ranks they held, they were husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters,” he said.

The Vice-President said the tragedy had left families struggling to come to terms with the sudden loss of their loved ones, stressing that the nation must remember the human cost of military service.

He said the Federal Government’s responsibility to the bereaved families should extend beyond expressions of sympathy.

“A nation that asks its citizens to serve must also remember those who pay the ultimate price in that service,” Shettima said.

He also reaffirmed President Bola Tinubu’s decision to declare three days of national mourning and order that flags be flown at half-mast across the country in honour of the deceased.

Shettima acknowledged the President’s directive to thoroughly investigate the circumstances of the crash, adding that the country mourned with the affected families as they awaited answers.