After about two years of not appointing substantive ambassadors and High Commissioners to various Nigerian Missions abroad, Nigerians have continued to wait again even after President Bola Tinubu sent the list of ambassadorial nominees to the National Assembly.
Three weeks after the nominees were cleared by the Senate; President Tinubu is yet to assign them to missions, a development that has again raised concerns as to the seriousness of the diplomatic engagements of the current administration in Nigeria.
The Tinubu administration anchored its foreign policy drive on 4Ds (Democracy, Demography, Development and Diaspora), an ambitious Foreign Policy Drive to attract investment to develop Nigeria, through its vibrant and large Diaspora and exploit its youthful population to strengthen its democracy.
At the moment however, it is hard to ascertain the reasons the president has not assigned the envoys who are badly needed to pursue the foreign policy objectives of the country in the light of the challenging situation facing the country in areas of security and economic development.
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Experts are of the view that the delay in assigning ambassadorial nominees to their duty posts several weeks after they were cleared by parliament is worrisome and calls to question the country's foreign policy direction.
Speaking to our correspondent yesterday, International Affairs experts Dr. Austin Maho, said although President Tinubu has alluded to a comprehensive reform of Nigeria's Foreign Service architecture, this is taking too long and raises critical questions.
"The prolonged absence of ambassadors in foreign missions is inimical to Nigeria's diplomatic effectiveness. Nigeria is currently in the global spotlight due to the US designation as a Country of Particular Concern and the bombing of terrorist camps in northern Nigeria. The lack of ambassadors may hinder the country's ability to navigate complex international relations and protect our national interests and sovereignty.
"The delay in ambassadorial appointments undermines Nigeria's diplomatic credibility because ambassadors play critical roles in advancing and promoting the home country's policy direction," he said.
Public intellectual Dr. Katch Ononuju told our correspondent on Saturday that it has become the style of President Tinubu to delay the appointment, for reasons only the President himself can tell. His submission suggests that all was not well with the Nigerian diplomatic landscape during the tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari, which needed drastic reforms.
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A Nigerian diplomat, who does not want his name on print, said the envoys should be assigned to their duty posts immediately as the situation is becoming embarrassing to the nation.
He said "Nigeria is facing serious challenges at the moment. The northern part of the country is under US bombardment to root out terrorists and this has put the country in the global chessboard. This means that the country no longer operates in isolation on counter terrorism politics and intense pressure is coming from big powers following a vacuum of authority that was exposed by the Nigerian government's alleged failure to tame terrorism."
He added that the reported collaboration with the US to combat terrorism requires enormous contributions of a substantive ambassador in the US and other countries with which Nigeria has bilateral relations.
