Top echelons in the nation's security sector, among who was former Chief of Naval Staff , Rear Admiral Alison Madueke (retd.) paid glowing tributes to former Chief of Army Staff, late Major General Mohammed Alli, at a Service of Songs held Wednesday evening , at the Muson centre, Lagos.
The occasion marked the commencement of a week-long funeral rites of the late Army General, who died on November 19, 2023 at age 79.
In his tribute, former Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Madueke (retd.) said he and the late Alli shared certain things in common.
Describing the deceased as a cerebral officer, Maduekwe, said, " We were both born in 1944. We became Service Chiefs the same day and we stopped being Service Chiefs on the same day.
" MC Alli, was a man of his word, a very cerebral officer, he was very articulate, firm and fair. He said things the way they were . If it was white ,MC Alli would say it was white and if it was black, he would say so. That was the greatest quality of an officer and a gentleman and MC embodied it all."
"In my service life, I have lost two very close colleagues. The first was Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu and the second was MC Alli. That fortified me to say whenever it comes, let it come.
"Officers have very tough responsibility, people who are not in that court will not understand. The duty the servicemen do, nobody else can do. They give their lives for the defence of others. It is so deep and profound. And every service personnel has a right to lift his face and be proud of the job they do because it is a very noble one. It is an intensive and demanding job and a respectable one at that. MC Alli embodied all these qualities and that is what this country has lost. I pray that his soul will rest in peace".
On his part, the first son of the deceased, Churchill Alli, described his late father as one who played an important role in his life.
He said : "My father was everything to me. He was my mentor. He had his way of showing love to his children and we understood it. My siblings and I will greatly miss him".
Speaking on the legacies his father left , Chruchchill, said, " The unity of Nigeria is one of the legacies my father left behind. He kept hammering on it, even when he was frail. He said if he was to wear his uniform again, to fight for the unity of this country ,he would do that. I believe that is the greatest legacy. He served his country till his death. My father loved his country, he loved his profession and nothing took that away from him, he added.
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Earlier in his sermon, the Assistant Parish Priest of the Catholic Church of the Assumption ,Falomo , Reverend Father Joseph Oyekunle, clarified that death was not the destruction of man but the passage that leads to eternal life and therefore, urged Christians not to be afraid of death.
According to him, "There are two dates on a graveside, the date of birth and date of death. In between these dates , there is a dash. The dash represents the choice you have made over time, while on earth. So let's start thinking about our choices."
Taking the Bible reading from Ecclesiastes chapter 3, which states that there was time for everything, the preacher said, " This is a reminder that we need to take stock of our lives, we need to ask ourselves this fundamental question: how is my spiritual life? We are on a journey in this world, so don't live as if your life ends here. But live knowing that there is a place where our father has prepared for us. The life that we live does not belong to us, it belongs to God and in the appropriate time ,God will demand for it."
