The House of Representa-tives yesterday ordered an audit of all military hardware in the country, with a view to ascertaining the state of equipment and aircraft in the fleet of the Nigerian Air Force.
Shortly before the House adjourned yesterday as a mark of honour for the 12 senior military officers who lost their lives in the Sunday military plane crash at Korti Village in Benue State, the members resolved that an audit had become imperative.
Leading the pack of those in support of the audit were the House�s Deputy Speaker, Hon. Austin Opara, Hon. Nkechi Nwogu (PDP, Abia) and Hon. Ike Chinwo (PDP, Rivers) who stated that it was necessary for the public to know the true state of affairs of military equipment in the country.
The day�s session began with the House observing a minute silence in honour of the dead.
The Speaker, Alhaji Aminu Bello Masari thereafter announced that the House would have to adjourn for a day in honour of the victims of the air mishap, whilst its leadership would pay a condolence visit to President Olusegun Obasanjo.
At that point, Hon. Sola Adeyeye and Hon. Oluwole Adeyemo raised objections. While Adeyeye maintained that it would be a greater honour for the dead if the House forged ahead with the business of the day, Adeyemo held that deliberating on the matter to avert a recurrence would serve a better purpose.
The deputy speaker at this point intervened, stressing that the need for the House to adjourn should be placed beside the mood of the nation and a reflection of the times.
The House thereafter resolved to adjourn.
Shortly after the House adjourned, Honourables Abike Dabiri, Ado Dogo, Oluwole Oke and Setoni Koshedo, chairmen of the committees on Media and Publicity, Army, Defence, and Air Force respectively addressed a press conference.
Koshedo dismissed suggestions that the Dornier aircraft might not have been airworthy as at the time of the crash, disclosing that members of his committee rode in the ill-fated aircraft �not too long ago.�
He, however, admitted that personnel of Nigeria Air Force have had to grapple with the challenges of procuring modern equipment, adding that it was not right to pre-empt the outcome of investigations into the crash.
Koshedo lamented that the mishap occurred just days after his committee approached the Minister of Defence, Alhaji Rabiu Musa Kwankwanso, on the need for better funding for the Air Force.
On his part, Chairman of the Hose Committee on Army, Hon. Ado Dogo, lamented that it would take Nigeria not less than 30 years to be able to groom officers �to take up assignments from where the (late) Generals stopped.�
Sep202006