Reps Fault Navy’s Dismissal Of Seaman Abbas, ‘Improper’ Foreign Platform Acquisition

The House of Representatives Committee on Navy has expressed its displeasure over the dismissal of Seaman Haruna Abbas by Nigerian Navy (NN) and the refusal of the Navy to provide information on the alleged acquisition of foreign platform without proper disclosure and due process.

The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) had early this month announced the dismissal of a Naval rating, Seaman Haruna Abbas, from Service for disobeying orders.

Abbass’ wife, Hussaina Iliya, had gone on a popular radio station in Abuja to accuse the military of unjustly detaining her husband since 2018. Days later, the the Service announced the dismissal of Abbas from the Armed Forces.

Chairman of the House Navy Committee, Hon. Yusuf Gagdi (APC, Plateau) expressed his misgivings about the development while addressing journalists after a closed-door session with the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla and other officers at the Naval headquarters in Abuja on Monday.

Gagdi said the legislative panel visited the Naval headquarters as part of its statutory constitutional responsibilities of oversight function, saying every House committee has the constitutional right to go for oversight function.

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He said: “So we came to interact with the Navy, to ask questions on taxpayers’ money, how money appropriated to Navy is being spent, how interventions by the good president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is being judicially used by the Navy, how the junior officers and the senior officers are being treated by the senior officers of the Navy, including the famous case of Seaman Haruna, how he was suddenly dismissed.

“It is our responsibility on behalf of the Nigerian people to ask Navy questions on these pertinent issues. We have asked them. We are generally not comfortable.

“We have said that we will go to all Naval commands and bases to perform a deep-rooted oversight function to know how resources are being used and how disciplinary matters are being handled by the Nigerian Navy. So by the special grace of God, it’s not a new thing.”

“And I have to tell you, without any fear of contradiction, the committee is not satisfied, okay?, specifically on the Seaman Abass’ issue,” the committee chairman stated.

Gagdi regretted that the Committee had also write to the Navy to provide some needed information ahead of the visit which he said was unbecoming of the Service especially looking at the importance of the information to the panel before it embarked on the visit.

“Beyond that, on Seaman Abass issue, on non-response to letters written by this committee demanding for documents to be delivered, to guide us in our oversight function, and for acquiring foreign platform without the knowledge of the committee, and so many things.

“And we cannot say anything now until we go to see those projects that have been executed or platforms that have been built.Then we come back with you here and have another interface with them,” he added.

Earlier, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, said the Nigerian Navy was the most difficult arm on the operations of the Nigerian Armed Forces which Nigerians misunderstood most and were not fully aware about its activities.

Ogalla stated that Navy’s areas of operations covers 290,000 kilometers which he said was one tenth of the nation’s landmass.

He noted that the Navy performs policing functions in the maritime sector as well as complements the Nigeria Customs Service, Police and other paramilitary agencies operations which he said became more prominent in recent times due to the security, economic and other challenges facing the country.