Senator Ali Ndume has publicly attacked President Bola Tinubu’s list of 65 ambassadorial nominees, demanding its withdrawal over alleged violations of Nigeria’s constitutional Federal Character principle.
The former Senate Leader and Chief Whip warned that the disparity in the distribution of slots across the six geopolitical zones is unfair and could exacerbate ethnic suspicion at a time for national unity. The Senate is scheduled to begin screening the nominees next week.
Senator Ndume stressed that the nomination list breaches Section 14(3) of the 1999 Constitution, which states that the composition of the Federal Government and its agencies must reflect the Federal Character of Nigeria to promote national unity and prevent the predominance of any single group.
My sincere appeal to President Tinubu is to withdraw this list… He should withdraw that list and present a fresh set of nominees that will align with the spirit of the Constitution on the Federal Character Principle – Ndume
The Senator specifically provided a breakdown of the 65 nominees by geopolitical zone. According to the Senator, the South-West takes 15 Nominees, North-West 13 Nominees, South-South 12 Nominees, North-Central 10 Nominees, South-East, 9 Nominees, North-East, 7 Nominees, representing the lowest share, which Ndume argues is an unfair allocation.
He also stated that while some states received three or four slots, others were entirely left out.
The list of 65 nominees, which includes 34 career diplomats and 31 non-career nominees, features several political figures and retired security chiefs, such as former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (rtd.), former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd.), and prominent politicians like Reno Omokri and Chief Femi Fani-Kayode.
The Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs has been given a one-week deadline by Senate President Godswill Akpabio to screen the list and report back.
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