Appoint 80% career ambassadors, ex-foreign affairs minister urges Tinubu

A former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ike Nwachukwu, has urged President Bola Tinubu to reserve 80 per cent of his ambassadorial appointments for career ambassadors. Nwachukwu said this on Tuesday at the public presentation of “Fragment of Time: My Foreign Service Year,” a memoir by veteran diplomat, Eineje Onobu. He expressed disappointment over what he […]

A former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ike Nwachukwu, has urged President Bola Tinubu to reserve 80 per cent of his ambassadorial appointments for career ambassadors.
Nwachukwu said this on Tuesday at the public presentation of “Fragment of Time: My Foreign Service Year,” a memoir by veteran diplomat, Eineje Onobu.
He expressed disappointment over what he described as a growing preference for political appointees in ambassadorial positions, warning that the trend is undermining morale and career progression within Nigeria’s diplomatic service.
“In my time, we had a 70 – 30 ratio. That is 70 per cent of career ambassadors and 30 per cent for non-career ambassadors.
“We must go back to that. It is frustrating for young men and women to enter service aiming to become an ambassador, but failing to do so because there are no available slots.
“Again, from my background as a soldier, the aim is to be a general. So, let us plead with the government of the day, going forward, to the 70 – 30 ratio or even an 80 – 20 ratio so that these young men and women who put their lives in service reach the top of their career, ” the retired Major General said.
The Senate had confirmed 62 ambassadorial nominees four months ago. In total, the list comprised 34 career ambassadors, 31 non-career ambassadors and high commissioners, bringing the number of confirmed nominees to 65.
In his remarks, the author, Onobu, reflected on the evolution of Nigeria’s foreign policy, highlighting the role of leadership, institutional reforms and strategic vision in shaping the country’s diplomatic trajectory.
He recounted his early career beginning in 1985 at Nigeria’s Permanent Mission in New York, before returning to Nigeria to serve under former Foreign Affairs Minister, Bolaji Akinyemi.
“How he discovered me, I would not know. But he asked me to join him. I spent two years working closely with him across the world on key foreign policy initiatives,” he noted.
Onobu also credited Nwachukwu with influencing his rise in the diplomatic service.
“From the very first day, he told me I would become an ambassador. I didn’t believe it, but he insisted—and he made it happen,” he recounted.

Chairman of the organising committee, Godknows Igali, underscored the importance of documenting Nigeria’s diplomatic history, describing the foreign service as a community bound by national interest.

Describing the memoir as a significant contribution, Igali said it captures decades of diplomatic engagement and offers rare insight into Nigeria’s foreign policy evolution.