B/Haram: FG wont abandon families of slain soldiers —Osinbajo

VICE-PRESIDENT Yemi Osinbajo, on Sunday, said the Federal Government will not abandon families, especially children, of soldiers who died fighting insurgency in the country.

He urged military to remain committed in its constitutional role of safeguarding the country’s territory, noting that government was committed to ensuring that the dreams of the fallen heroes for their children were achieved.

Speaking at the interdenominational church service for the 2017 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration, held at the National Christian Centre, Abuja, Osinbajo described those who caused the crises leading to deployment of the military, where some of them paid the supreme price, as evil.

He urged both Christians and Muslims to remain firm and not allow perpetrators of the crises to achieve their aims.

The vice president commended the military over the various roles it played in ensuring that the country remained one, especially the latest feat of defeating the Boko Haram terrorists in the North East.

“We are committed to ensuring that dreams of our fallen heroes, especially for their children, are achieved.

“The victorious fight of our military against the evil ideology of Boko Haram is evidence of ascendancy of good over evil.

“Our men and women of the armed forces have, in the past years, battled an ideology that supports killings of children at birth, rape and abduction of women and young girls. Many of our men in the forces died in the North East.

“At some point, this evil had taken over 14 local government areas in this country, but the men whose wives are now widows, whose husbands are now widowers and children fatherless, gave their lives to take back these territories and removed darkness, so that light could prevail.

“As we remember our departed military heroes, we also celebrate that attribute of brotherhood that the military has demonstrated in the history of the country.

“Against Boko Haram, they stood side by side, Christians, Muslims and men and women of other faith. They stood and still stand united from the North-East, the South-East, North-West, the South-West, the North-Central and the South-South.

“They are today in Southern Kaduna, Christians, Muslims and from every tribe and tongue in Nigeria. They are there to defeat hate, intolerance and terrorism. They are prepared again to lay down their lives to prove that this country belongs to all of us, regardless of religion or ethnicity and that when any Nigerian is killed, it is evil that has prevailed, it is darkness that prevailed.

“We must never be deceived by those who killed in the name of religion. No religion teaches the killing of the innocents. Anyone who kills another and said God is great is either insane or does not understand what he’s saying,” Osinbajo said.