THE Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Ahmed Audi, has condoled the families of seven personnel who were ambushed by bandits in Birnin Gwari, Kaduna State.
Addressing bereaved families at the NSCDC Kaduna Command Headquarters, on Thursday, during a condolence visit, the CG stated that the corps had in the past lost officers in the line of duty, but not as many as in the Birnin-Gwari tragic incident.
He later presented cheques for undisclosed amounts of money to the next-of-kin of the seven fallen heroes as a token of support pending the payment of their accrued benefits.
He also announced the approval of one employment slot for each family as a replacement for the slain officers.
This was contained in a statement signed by the Corps spokesperson, Olusola Odumosu, on Thursday.
According to report, seven NSCDC officials were killed in an attack at a Kuriga mining site in Kaduna state on January 9, 2023.
Five other security operatives attached to a sister agency were said to have been killed in the same incident.
Audi, who described the killing as colossal, however, charged other personnel not to be deterred by the ugly incident.
The CG said, “Death is inevitable; it is heartbreaking to lose personnel.
“Although this is not the first time we are losing personnel, it’s so painful that we’ve lost seven personnel at a time.
“It is a great loss, and that is why I am here personally, to encourage all of you to continue to do your best and not give up.”
The Corps helmsman hinted that he had initiated the process of payment of death benefits and other entitlements to the affected officers through the office of the Minister of Interior to ameliorate the pains of those they left behind.
He explained that the Corps had been paying burial benefits, entitlements, accident benefits, and group life insurance policies to personnel as and when due.
He said that upon his assumption of duty as CG about two years ago, the backlog of salaries and arrears had been cleared, with a few pending, which would soon be settled.