President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded a second batch of 32 ambassadorial nominees to the Senate for confirmation, expanding the list he began earlier in the week with an initial three names.
In two separate letters addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Tinubu requested the speedy confirmation of 15 career ambassadors and 17 non-career ambassadors.
The new list includes four women among the career nominees and six women among the non-career picks.
Prominent figures among the non-career nominees include former presidential aide Reno Omokri; former INEC chairman, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu; former Ekiti First Lady, Erelu Angela Adebayo; former Enugu State governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; and former Lagos deputy governor, Otunba Femi Pedro. Also nominated are former aviation minister Femi Fani-Kayode; former Abia governor Okezie Ikpeazu; Senator Jimoh Ibrahim; former Oyo First Lady Florence Ajimobi; former Lagos commissioner Lola Akande; former Adamawa senator Grace Bent; and Ambassador Paul Oga Adikwu, Nigeria’s former envoy to the Holy See.
Others on the list include Barrister Ogbonnaya Kalu, Tasiu Musa Maigari, Yakubu N. Gambo, Prof. Nora Ladi Daduut, and Barrister Nkechi Linda Ufochukwu.
The career ambassador nominees include Enebechi Monica Okwuchukwu, Yakubu Nyaku Danladi, Miamuna Ibrahim Besto, Musa Musa Abubakar, Syndoph Paebi Endoni, Chima Geoffrey Lioma David, Mopelola Adeola-Ibrahim, Abimbola Samuel Reuben, Yvonne Ehinosen Odumah, Hamza Mohammed Salau, Ambassador Shehu Barde, Ambassador Ahmed Mohammed Monguno, Ambassador Muhammad Saidu Dahiru, Ambassador Olatunji Ahmed Sulu Gambari, and Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande.
According to the presidency, the nominees are expected to be posted to countries with which Nigeria maintains key bilateral ties, including China, India, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, the UAE, Qatar, South Africa, and Kenya, as well as multilateral missions such as the United Nations, UNESCO, and the African Union. Their specific postings will be announced after Senate confirmation.
Last week, Tinubu submitted the first batch of three nominees, Ambassador Ayodele Oke, Ambassador Amin Mohammed Dalhatu, and retired Colonel Lateef Kayode Are who are expected to be deployed to the UK, USA, or France once confirmed.
The President said additional ambassadorial nominations will be released soon.
