President Bola Tinubu has nominated 32 persons including a former governor of Enugu State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; immediate past chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu; ex-minister, Femi Fani-Kayode and ex-presidential aide, Reno Omokri as ambassadors.
Others in the list include a former governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu; a former deputy governor of Lagos State, Femi Pedro.
Ondo Senator and businessman, Jimoh Ibrahim; a former Ekiti first lady, Erelu Angela Adebayo and former Adamawa Senator, Grace Bent also made the list of nominees.
Tinubu has already forwarded their names to the Senate for the confirmation of their appointment.
“In two separate letters to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, President Tinubu asked the Senate to consider and confirm expeditiously 15 nominees as career ambassadors and 17 nominees as non-career ambassadors,” presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga said in a statement issued on Saturday.
A breakdown of the list shows that there are four women on the career ambassadors’ list and six on the non-career ambassadors’ list.
Others who were nominated as non-career ambassador designates are Ogbonnaya Kalu from Abia; a former speaker of the Katsina House of Assembly, Tasiu Musa Maigari; a former Commissioner in Plateau State and ex-deputy executive secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Yakubu N. Gambo.
It also includes a former Senator from Plateau, Nora Ladi Daduut; Nkechi Linda Ufochukwu from Anambra State; ex-First Lady of Oyo, Fatima Florence Ajimobi; former Lagos Commissioner, Lola Akande, and the former ambassador of Nigeria to the Holy See, Paul Oga Adikwu from Benue State.
Apart from these, Tinubu also nominated career ambassador and high commissioner-designates.
They are Enebechi Monica Okwuchukwu (Abia), Yakubu Nyaku Danladi (Taraba), Miamuna Ibrahim Besto (Adamawa), Musa Musa Abubakar (Kebbi), Syndoph Paebi Endoni (Bayelsa), Chima Geoffrey Lioma David (Ebonyi) and Mopelola Adeola-Ibrahim (Ogun).
Abimbola Samuel Reuben (Ondo), Yvonne Ehinosen Odumah (Edo), Hamza Mohammed Salau (Niger), Ambassador Shehu Barde (Katsina), Ambassador Ahmed Mohammed Monguno (Borno) were also nominated.
Others are Ambassador Muhammad Saidu Dahiru (Kaduna), Ambassador Olatunji Ahmed Sulu Gambari (Kawara) and Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande (Osun).
Onanuga said, “The new nominees are expected to be posted to countries with which Nigeria maintains excellent and strategic bilateral relations, such as China, India, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, South Africa, Kenya, and to Permanent Missions such as the United Nations, UNESCO, and the African Union”.
But they will know their diplomatic assignments after their confirmation by the Senate.
The latest list of nominees came days after President Tinubu sent the first set of three names to the upper lawmaking body for confirmation.
Those in the first list sent for screening and confirmation were Ambassador Ayodele Oke (Oyo), Ambassador Amin Mohammed Dalhatu (Jigawa), and Retired Colonel Lateef Kayode Are (Ogun).
“All three are in the pot for posting to the UK, USA, or France after their confirmation,” the presidency said.