President Bola Tinubu has nominated Mrs Florence Ajimobi, the wife of the late former governor of Oyo State, Reno Omokri and Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, former INEC Chairman, Professor Yakubu Mahmud and 28 others as ambassador nominees.
The names of the new ambassador nominees were sent by the president to the Senate for confirmation, days after he sent the first batch of three names.
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.
As stated in a State House Press Release by the Special Adviser to the President (Information and Strategy), Bayo Onanuga, there are four women on the career ambassadors’ list and six women on the non-career ambassadors’ list.
Among the non-career ambassador-designates are Ogbonnaya Kalu from Abia; a former presidential aide, Omokri (Delta); former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmud Yakubu; former Ekiti First Lady, Erelu Angela Adebayo; and a former Enugu State governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.
Others are Tasiu Musa Maigari, a former Speaker of the Katsina State House of Assembly; Yakubu N. Gambo, a former Commissioner in Plateau State and former deputy executive secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC);
Professor Nora Ladi Daduut, a former senator from Plateau; Otunba Femi Pedro, a former deputy governor of Lagos State; Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, a former aviation minister from Osun State; and Nkechi Linda Ufochukwu from Anambra State are also on the nomination list.
Also on the list are former First Lady of Oyo State, Mrs Ajimobi; former Lagos Commissioner, Lola Akande; former Adamawa senator, Grace Bent; former governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu; Senator Jimoh Ibrahim, from Ondo State, and the former Ambassador of Nigeria to the Holy See, Ambassador Paul Oga Adikwu from Benue State.
Among the nominees for career ambassador and high commissioner-designates 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).
The other nominees are Abimbola Samuel Reuben (Ondo); Yvonne Ehinosen Odumah(Edo); Hamza Mohammed Salau(Niger); Ambassador Shehu Barde (Katsina); Ambassador Ahmed Mohammed Monguno (Borno); Ambassador Muhammad Saidu Dahiru (Kaduna); Ambassador Olatunji Ahmed Sulu Gambari (Kwara) and Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande (Osun).
As contained in the release, the new nominees are expected to be posted to countries with which Nigeria maintains excellent and strategic bilateral relations.
The countries included China, India, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, South Africa and Kenya.
Some of them will also be posted to permanent missions such as the United Nations, UNESCO, and the African Union.
All the nominees, it was stated, will know their diplomatic assignments after their confirmation by the Senate.
Last week, President Tinubu sent three ambassadorial nominees for screening and confirmation.
The nominees were Ambassador Ayodele Oke (Oyo), Ambassador Amin Mohammed Dalhatu (Jigawa), and Retired Colonel Lateef Kayode Are (Ogun).
All the three have been pencilled for posting to the UK, USA, or France after their confirmation.
President Bola Tinubu, it was added in the release, said more nominees for ambassadorial positions will be announced soon.
