The House of Representatives on Tuesday mandated the Armed Forces of Nigeria to conduct a thorough and wholesome investigation into the circumstances that led to the heartless, gruesome and despicable killings of Soldiers in Delta state.
This is as Hon Francis Waive (Delta, APC) speaking on the incidence during plenary called on the military to abide by international engagement, stop burning of houses in the community and called for an end to reprisal attacks.
The House also in it’s resolution on the matter urged the military to work with the relevant authorities to bring all perpetrators and their collaborators to book.
The House further mandated its Committees on Defence to interface with the Armed Forces of Nigeria to ensure compliance and report to the House within four weeks.
The resolutions were sequel to a motion of urgent national importance titled – “Need to investigate and apprehend perpetrators of the gruesome killing of seventeen military personnel in delta state by Hon Babajimi Benson during plenary in Abuja.
Moving the motion, Benson noted with deep sadness, the needless and gruesome murder of seventeen military personnel in Delta state on Thursday 14 March 2024.
He also noted that the murdered military personnel comprise of Lt. Col. A.H. Ali who was the Commanding Officer, 181 Amphibious Battalion of the Nigerian Army, Major S.D Shafa, Major D.E Obi, Captain U. Zakari and thirteen other rank and file of the Nigerian military.
He further noted that the fallen soldiers were on a peaceful and mediatory mission to quell communal clash between Okuama and Okoloba Communities in Ughelli South and Bomadi LGAs of Delta State respectively when the horrific incident occurred.
According to him, the military personnel were only responding to a distress call in their service to their fatherland when they were ambushed and killed on Thursday.
He said that the perpetrators of the heinous act did not only stop at killing the military personnel but also went ahead to sacrilegiously debase their remains by ripping out their hearts and other body parts.
“Worried that unless checked and stopped, acts like this, by the very people the AFN are meant to protect, have a potential of demoralising the military and affecting the war on insecurity which has so far recorded some successes.
Speaking also on the motion Hon Francis Waive said “In as much as we condemn this act carried out in this community we call on the military in the mist if this provocation, we appeal to our military to observe some level of international engagement and put an end to the burning of the community.
The house to this end observed a minute silence in honour of the murdered military personnel and called on the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to provide relief materials to those affected in the community.
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