Nigerian Leader Expresses Sadness Over Death of 46 Soldiers in Road Accident

Nigerian President Umaru Yar’adua on Thursday expressed sadness at the death of 46 Nigerian soldiers in a ghastly road accident on the Bauchi-Potiskum road in northern Nigeria on Wednesday.

The soldiers were returning to their base after serving in the African Union peacekeeping mission in Sudan’s Darfur region.

According to a statement from the presidency in Abuja, Yar’adua deeply regretted that after confronting and surviving the hazards of service in strife-ridden Darfur, the soldiers returned home only to lose their lives in a vehicular collision on their way back to their base.

The statement, signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Communications, Mr Olusegun Adeniyi, said the president believed that the death of the soldiers whilst on national service was an immense loss to Nigeria.

He directed the defense headquarters and the Nigerian army authorities to convey his personal condolences to the families of the dead soldiers and make appropriate arrangements to give them a befitting burial.

Yar’adua further directed that immediate action be taken to alleviate the trauma of their shocking deaths on their spouses, children and other dependents.

Adeniyi said that the president would be cutting short his trip to Arusha, Tanzania, for the African Union’s Committee of 12 meeting, to come back early on Friday.

Source African Press Agency

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