Incessant Military Plane Crashes: PDP Raises Alarm, Demands Independent Judicial Inquiry
- An independent investigation into the recurring military plane crashes has been called for by the opposition party
- The call for the probe was made by the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party on Wednesday, April 20
- According to the PDP, the crashes of military aircraft in such a short period of time points to the possibility of some compromise by the ruling party
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has raised an alarm over the recurring crash of aircraft belonging to the Nigerian military.
Two officers were reportedly killed in the incident which occurred on Tuesday, April 19.
In a statement received by Legit.ng, the opposition party pointed to the growing public apprehension of possible security compromises and complicity in the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration.
Source: Facebook
Signed by the national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba, this comprises has led to the incessant and unexplained military aircraft crashes in the country in the last seven years.
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The PDP said that the disturbing trend is the fact that after each crash, the APC government comes up with a public announcement to investigate the circumstances surrounding the mishap but typical of the administration, such a probe goes cold.
Ologunagba added that this pattern gives credence to the strong suspicion among Nigerians that there is complicity or sabotage in the nation's security architecture.
Some of the military aircraft crashes in seven years
The PDP recalled that in May last year - just eleven months ago - a NAF aircraft crashed around Kaduna International Airport, killing the then chief of army staff, Ibrahim Attahiru and 10 other officers.
The party warned that it is instructive to note that Nigeria has experienced no fewer than 11 unexplained military air crashes since the Muhammadu Buhari-led APC government took over power in 2015.
Ologunagba said:
The PDP demands a system-wide independent judicial enquiry to conduct an investigation into the remote and immediate causes of these incessant crashes of our military aircraft, especially in the face of worsening terrorism attacks in our country.
"This demand is imperative and consistent with the demands by Nigerians who have lost faith in the ability of the APC government to conduct a transparent and credible investigation into any matter, particularly those relating to our national security."
Ologunagba also said that the PDP is saddened by this trend of event and hereby condoles with the Nigerian Airforce, the families of the officers involved in the air crash.
The party prayed for the repose of the souls of the departed officers and salutes the courageous military officers while charging them not to be deterred by these very sad and unfortunate incidents.
Ologunagba urged the soldiers to remain vigilant and focused on their constitutional duty of protecting our nation, especially at this critical point in our national life.
Officers feared dead as NAF aircraft reportedly crashes in Kaduna
Another aircraft belonging to the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) reportedly crashed in Kaduna state.
The trainer aircraft which has two pilots aboard was said to have crashed on Tuesday, April 19, while on a training mission.
While the two pilots on the aircraft are feared dead, the Nigerian Air Force authorities are yet to react to the incident.
Attahiru’s death: Probe launched after crash of military jet in Kaduna
Meanwhile, the Accident Investigation Bureau, Nigeria announced that it recovered the black box of the crashed Nigerian Air Force plane in Kaduna.
The bureau disclosed that the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) from the accident Beechcraft 350 aircraft were recovered as its investigation commenced.
The federal agency stated that the next step was for investigators to download and analyse the information contained in the recorders.
Source: Legit.ng
