The Anambra State government has become the first State in Nigeria to declare three-days of national mourning for the late Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru and the 10 other military personnel who died in Friday’s crash of Nigerian Air Force (NAF) aircraft in Kaduna.
In a statement by Mr C. Don Adinuba, Commissioner for Information & Public Enlightenment, the Anambra State Government said that the days of mourning would begin on Monday.
According to the statement, “Governor Willie Obiano has directed that the state flag fly at half-mast in all public facilities in Anambra State from Monday, May 25 to Wednesday, May 27, 2021.
“The mourning is in appreciation of the role of the Nigerian Armed Forces in bringing about peace, stability and order in the country as a whole and in Anambra State in particular. Together with the Nigeria Police Force, Department of State Security, Nigeria Civil Defence and Security Corps and Anambra Vigilante Group, the Armed Forces have played a huge role in making Anambra the most peaceful and the safest state in Nigeria in the last seven years, despite the security breaches of the past few months. Officers and men of the Armed Forces patrol are to this day patrolling streets, towns and villages of the state, especially troubled parts, both day and night.
“As a result of the safe and peaceful environment, Anambra State has in the last couple of years attracted huge investments. The state has recorded investments worth between four and five billion dollars ($4-5 bn), creating products and services as well as direct and indirect employment in various sectors.
“The people and Government have always been proud of their relationship with the Nigerian Armed Forces. We are proud that the first university graduate to join the Nigerian Army, Dim Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, was a worthy son of the State. Despite being the son of Nigeria’s wealthiest man in the 1950s and despite obtaining a master’s degree in Modern History from Oxford University, Dim Ojukwu joined the Army as a noncommissioned officer and rose through the ranks.
“The people and Government of Anambra State recognize that military duties are sacrificial, carried out to serve the public good. In the imitable language of the Holy Book, “no love is greater than that a man should lay down his life for the benefit of others” (John 15: 13).
“May the soul of Lt Gen Ibrahim Attahiru and those of the officers and men who perished with him last Friday in the service of our motherland rest in peace.“