Navy buries commander who died rescuing others

There was a free flow of tears as Lieutenant Commander Gideon Gwaza, the Base Operations Officer of the Nigerian Navy Forward Operating Base in Bonny, Rivers State, was buried on Wednesday.

Gwaza, who was buried at the National Military Cemetery, Abuja, lost his life on July 30, 2024, during a rescue operation he led, which eventually resulted in the rescue of 59 persons from an ill-fated vessel, MV AMBIKA 4 that was on the brink of sinking.

Daily Trust reports that the vessel was operating at the Okpobo Field, near the Okpobo River channel, in the lower section of Imo River, next to the estuary into the Atlantic Ocean. It connects Akwa Ibom and Rivers states.

Speaking by the side of his grave before his remains were lowered, the distraught wife of the deceased and mother of three, Salome Gwaza, said they had always planned to jointly nurture their younger children till they become adults before his untimely death.

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Salome, however, said she took solace in God’s judgment because her husband died a hero, adding that she would ensure she makes her husband proud in the grave by doing what is expected of her as a widow for their children.

The elder sister of the late commander, Ishaku Matilda, described his death as painful and sudden, stressing that the legacy he left would continue to be in their memory.

In his remarks before the interment, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ogalla, described the late Naval officer as a “Born soldier and a man of impeccable character, adding that his death was a great loss to the Nigerian Navy and Nigeria as a whole.

“Out of those 59 persons on board, we had 10 Navy personnel on board. These 59 crew members were in danger of being perished. Lieutenant Commander Gwaza was detailed with a team of other patriotic ratings and officers to go and rescue these people.

“Unfortunately, and in line with the operating environment where we operate, where you cannot predict the nature of tide perfectly, you can also not predict so many other factors that take place out there at sea, he had an accident and we lost him that day. It’s very sad,” he added.

Earlier, the Commanding Officer, Bonny, Captain M.A Mohammed said Gwaza knew the operation was risky but braved the odds to rescue the victims, adding that apart from the operation that claimed his life, Gwaza had displayed courage in others.