Arotile: Body Of Flying Officer To Be Laid To Rest July 23 -

Family , Afenifere Demand Probe
NAF Says Investigation Ongoing, Two Persons Held

By Kolawole Ojebisi

The family of Tolulope Arotile, the late first Nigerian female combat pilot, and the Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, on Thursday rejected the claim of freak accident the Nigerian Air Force announced as cause of death, calling for a probe.

The New Diplomat had reported how Tolulope Arotile, a combat pilot, died on Tuesday at the age of 24 after, according to the Nigerian Air Force, she was “inadvertently hit by the reversing vehicle of an excited former Air Force secondary school classmate while trying to greet her.”

Tolulope’s elder sister, Damilola Adegboye, told journalists on Thursday that the family was devastated by her untimely death and had been wondering how a car that was reversing could kill her. first Nigerian female combat pilot

“We are not convinced that Tolu can die like that in a freak accident. I know that the military is well trained in the art of investigation; we want them to carry out a thorough investigation that can convince us beyond all doubts that the incident that led to her death was the truth,” she added.

Narrating her last moments with her sister Damilola said the day the late combat pilot died, she was in the room where she was sleeping.

Damilola said, “A call came into her mobile phone; from the way she spoke, I knew that the caller must be a senior officer telling her to come to the air force base. She was reluctant and I offered to drop her off.

“One hour later, I saw it online that something serious had happened to her. I couldn’t believe that somebody I just dropped off is dead.”

Also, Afenifere on Thursday demanded a coroner inquest into Tolulope’s death.

The National Publicity Secretary of the organisation, Yinka Odumakin, in a statement titled, ‘Afenifere wants coroner inquest into Tolulope Arotile’s death,’ said, with the death of the flying officer, “Nigeria the demented chicken sucked one of its finest eggs yet again.”

He said, “It was only eyewitness accounts that unofficially released that it was a colleague of hers who reversed his car to knock her down on the road.

“Unofficial accounts say she just returned from a combat operation before she was knocked down to death. We therefore do not accept that her death was an accident until the report of a coroner says how she died and how a supposed attempt to stop and greet could come with a death impact.

“We say this against what is known of the infiltration of the forces by sympathisers and agents of Boko Haram. We recall the report years back of such agents revealing the routes and timing of movements of our troops to Boko Haram who ambushed them.”

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has announced that the remains of late Flying Officer Tolulope Arotile, will be buried in full military honours.

A statement by the Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore, Ibikunle Daramola, on Friday disclosed the late Arotile who died on July 14, 2020, will be buried at the National Military Cemetery in Abuja, on July 23.

Following her death, the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, had received some members of the Federal Executive Council as well as members of the National Assembly who visited him at NAF Headquarters, to condole with him over the unfortunate demise of the young NAF pilot.

Among them were the Honourable Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen, as well as the Honourable Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

The joint delegation from the upper and lower houses of the National Assembly, comprising 20 members, was led by the Chairman Senate Committee on Air Force, Distinguished Senator Bala Ibn-Na’Allah, and the Chairman House Committee on the Air Force, Honourable Shehu Koko.

Speaking during her visit, the Honourable Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen, who was accompanied on the visit by the Director-General of the National Council for Women Development as well as leaders of some other Women’s Groups, said she received the news of the death of Flying Officer Arotile with great shock, from which she said it would be difficult for her to recover.

She, however, noted that the death of the young pilot would not be in vain as she would forever be remembered for her gallantry and contributions towards ensuring a secured Nigeria.

The Chairman Senate Committee on Air Force, Senator Bala Ibn-Na’Allah, stated that the Committee, and the Senate as a whole, lacked the words to express how painful her death was to them.

He said they were, however, consoled that there was no greater honour than when one dies while in service to one’s Nation.

He described the late Arotile as a dedicated and goal-oriented young woman who lived an exemplary life that was worthy of emulation by other young Nigerians.

While reiterating that the Nigerian Senate shares in the pain of the Service and that of the Arotile family, he urged the NAF to continue to give opportunities for many young Nigerian girls to realize their dreams of serving their country as pilots in the NAF.

The Chairman House Committee on the Air Force, Honourable Shehu Koko, on his part, while recalling the day Flying Officer Arotile was winged as the first female combat helicopter pilot in the NAF, noted that they at the House of Representatives, being aware of the many exploits the young officer had made in her short but impactful career, were extremely pained by her passing away but had taken solace in the fact that she had left a lasting legacy.

In his response during the visits, the CAS expressed his appreciation to the esteemed dignitaries as well as all Nigerians for their overwhelming show of support to the NAF over the passing of Flying Officer Arotile.

He noted that the NAF would never forget her, not only because she was the first female combat helicopter pilot in the Service, but also because of her legacy as a very intelligent, highly committed and extremely patriotic officer who excelled in virtually every endeavour.

Air Marshal Abubakar recalled how, while on basic helicopter course in South Africa, she was selected, because of her excellent performance, to undergo a more advanced flying course on the Agusta 109 Power Attack Helicopter in Italy before returning to finish the basic course along with her other colleagues in South Africa.

Such, the CAS said, was her commitment to excellence on the job.

“This was what gave us the confidence to assign her to introduce the Agusta 109 Power Attack Helicopter to the President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari, during the induction ceremony at the Eagle Square in Abuja on 6 February 2020; which she did excellently”, he added.

Speaking further, the CAS noted that Flying Officer Arotile had left her mark in the sands of time which he said proves that when it comes to displaying excellence and adding value to the society, age or gender should not be barriers.

He disclosed that the NAF would, therefore, continue to give equal opportunities to female officers in terms of training, noting that a total of 11 female student pilots were currently undergoing flying training both within and outside Nigeria.

It was gathered that a condolence visit to the Arotile Family in Lokoja by a high-powered delegation, including the CAS, Honourable Minister of Women Affairs and the Chairmen of the Senate and House Committees on Air Force, has been scheduled to hold on a date before the burial.

Meanwhile, following the public outcry provoked by the sudden death of Arotile, which many have described as ” suspicious’.

The Nigerian Air Force on Friday stated that it was investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of its Flying Officer, Tolulope Arotile, in a road accident, adding that two persons were being held.

The NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, stated these while fielding questions from newsmen.

He noted that at the end of the investigation, “whatever information needs to go out will go out.”

While recalling the steps NAF had taken since Arotile’s death and intimating journalists of new development NAF spokesman, Daramola, said, “First of all, in my first statement, I said she died from a road traffic accident. I further clarified the nature of the road traffic accident where one of her excited classmates who saw her reversed his car which led to him hitting her and knocking her down. This led to head injuries and a lot of haemorrhaging which ultimately resulted in her death.

“The two boys are in custody and the NAF will do a thorough investigation into the matter. It is a routine process – our own processes that are ongoing because it happened inside a NAF base. At the appropriate time, whatever information needs to go out will go out. But we cannot pre-empt that investigation process.

“Whatever needs to be known will be known; it is standard practice. So, we are investigating the circumstances leading to her death by a road traffic accident. It is an investigation because it may go beyond NAF.”