A list of ambassadorial nominees of President Bola Tinubu being bandied by at least two national newspapers in the last one week has been described as a ‘fake diplomatic jollof’ cooked for Nigerians as it turned out to be fake and non-existent.
Recall that a former federal lawmaker from Kaduna State, Senator Shehu Sani; ex-presidential aide, Reno Omokri, and former governors of Abia and Enugu States, Okezie Ikpeazu and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, respectively, were reportedly among those nominated for ambassadorial appointments by President Tinubu.
Also, ex-banker and founder of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Fola Adeola; former Lagos State deputy governor Femi Pedro, and former Minister of Aviation Chief Femi Fani-Kayode were reportedly on the long list of nominees.
It was reported that the nominees were being screened by the Department of State Services (DSS), and the final list will be made public soon after security clearance.
LEADERSHIP recalls that the country’s ambassadors were recalled from their postings last year without replacement. Also, the Minister of Foreign Affairs had repeatedly given the hints that the Federal Government was close to appointing new Ambassadors.
But, a Nigerian-American scholar and syndicated columnist, Prof. Farooq Kperogi, said the reported list of Ambassadorial nominees was fake for now.
Taking to his Facebook page on Monday morning, Kperogi said he called to congratulate one of the ‘freshly minted ambassadors’ and the ‘appontee’ said there was not a scintilla of truth to the viral news reports.
Kperogi wrote: “A major newspaper reported that certain past critics of the Bola Tinubu administration have been nominated for ambassadorial gigs and are being screened by security agencies.
“Everyone’s munching this spicy scoop on social media with glee, so I assumed it was true.
“Yesterday, I congratulated one of these freshly minted “ambassadors,” and he said there was not a scintilla of truth to the news. Ha!
“Who cooked up this deliciously fake diplomatic jollof? And why are the supposed nominees letting everyone savour the aroma without serving up a denial?”
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