Tinubu Sends 32 New Ambassadorial Nominees to Senate for Confirmation
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded a new list of 32 ambassadorial nominees to the Senate for approval, adding to the earlier list of three candidates sent last week. In two letters addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Tinubu urged the Senate to speed up the confirmation process for 15 career diplomats and 17 non-career nominees.
The new submissions also show increased gender representation, with four women among the career nominees and six women among the non-career candidates—signaling a stronger push for female inclusion in Nigeria’s diplomatic leadership.
Among the notable non-career nominees are:
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Barr. Ogbonnaya Kalu (Abia), former presidential aide
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Reno Omokri (Delta)
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Mahmud Yakubu, former INEC chairman
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Erelu Angela Adebayo, former First Lady of Ekiti
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Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, former Enugu State governor
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Tasiu Musa Maigari, ex-Katsina House Speaker
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Yakubu N. Gambo, former Plateau commissioner and UBEC deputy executive secretary
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Prof. Nora Ladi Daduut, former Plateau senator
The list also includes notable figures such as former Lagos deputy governor Otunba Femi Pedro, former aviation minister Femi Fani-Kayode, Barr. Nkechi Linda Ufochukwu (Anambra), former Oyo First Lady Fatima Florence Ajimobi, and ex-Lagos commissioner Lola Akande. Others are former Adamawa senator Grace Bent, former Abia governor Okezie Ikpeazu, Ondo senator Jimoh Ibrahim, and former Ambassador to the Holy See Paul Oga Adikwu.
Career diplomats nominated include:
Enebechi Monica Okwuchukwu (Abia), Yakubu Nyaku Danladi (Taraba), Miamuna Ibrahim Besto (Adamawa), Musa Musa Abubakar (Kebbi), Syndoph Paebi Endoni (Bayelsa), Chima Geoffrey Lioma David (Ebonyi), Mopelola Adeola-Ibrahim (Ogun), Abimbola Samuel Reuben (Ondo), Yvonne Ehinosen Odumah (Edo), Hamza Mohammed Salau (Niger), Ambassador Shehu Barde (Katsina), Ambassador Ahmed Mohammed Monguno (Borno), Muhammad Saidu Dahiru (Kaduna), Olatunji Ahmed Sulu Gambari (Kwara), and Wahab Adekola Akande (Osun).
Once the Senate completes the confirmation process, the diplomats will be deployed to Nigeria’s key foreign missions in countries such as China, India, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, the UAE, Qatar, South Africa, Kenya, and to multilateral bodies including the UN, AU, and UNESCO. Specific postings will be announced afterward.
This new submission comes shortly after Tinubu sent three nominees—Ambassador Ayodele Oke (Oyo), Ambassador Amin Mohammed Dalhatu (Jigawa), and Retired Colonel Lateef Kayode Are (Ogun)—who are expected to take up roles in either the UK, USA, or France. The President has signaled that even more nominations are on the way.
Bayo Onanuga
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy
November 29, 2025
