Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, has criticised President Bola Tinubu for failing to appoint ambassadors nearly two years into his administration, describing the situation as “unusual” and demanding an explanation from the government.
Akinyemi, who served as Nigeria’s foreign minister between 1985 and 1987, made the remarks on Thursday during an interview on Arise Television.
He said the prolonged delay in diplomatic postings could not be attributed to financial constraints, noting that functioning embassies remain central to a country’s foreign policy and global presence.
“I think the President owes us really an explanation. There must be something there, and that makes it difficult for me to explain. Well, it’s not my job to explain. It’s the job of the foreign minister to explain why we don’t have ambassadors after two years of this administration,” Akinyemi stated.
The ex-minister stressed that funding should not be an excuse, pointing out that federal revenue had increased significantly since the Tinubu administration assumed office.
“It cannot be due to lack of money, because since this government came on board, you could see how revenue has increased, and what they’ve done with the revenue is to increase money going to the states, increase money going to the National Assembly. Surely, part of this increase in revenue would have been made available to have ambassadors in different countries,” he added.
Diplomatic observers note that the absence of Nigerian ambassadors in several key countries has left gaps in bilateral relations, trade negotiations, and consular services.
