Open Letter to His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the Urgent Need to Appoint Ambassadors Across Nigeria’s Foreign Missions

Open Letter to His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the Urgent Need to Appoint Ambassadors Across Nigeria’s Foreign Missions

Your Excellency,

I write to you today as a concerned citizen and stakeholder in the Nigerian project, driven by a deep understanding of the evolving geopolitical climate and the approaching 2027 general elections. I respectfully draw your attention to the urgent and strategic necessity of appointing ambassadors to all of Nigeria’s foreign missions a matter that now transcends routine foreign policy administration and enters the realm of political diplomacy and international narrative management.

As the 2027 elections draw nearer, the political atmosphere in Nigeria will undoubtedly intensify. Understandably, political maneuvering, alignment, and realignments are already underway. In such highly contested democratic cycles, international perception becomes a battleground of its own. Regardless of how credible the process may be, opposition figures locally and internationally will challenge the legitimacy of outcomes, narratives will fly, and the West, particularly, will be paying close attention.

In this context, Your Excellency Sir, the role of an ambassador is not merely ceremonial. Ambassadors are the President’s personal representatives, vested with the full faith and credit of the Nigerian state. Their presence enhances state-to-state relations, secures bilateral interests, and projects the official voice of the Nigerian government in intergovernmental circles, particularly within the UN, EU, AU, Commonwealth, and strategic bilateral partners like the U.S., UK, Germany, France, and others.

Leaving such posts vacant or under lower-ranking chargé d’affaires limits our diplomatic bandwidth at a time when soft power, strategic communication, and foreign political engagement are more essential than ever.

As you continue to steer Nigeria through reforms and global repositioning, it is vital to preempt any narrative vacuum in our foreign missions. If Nigeria is to be fairly represented in the court of international opinion during the 2027 political season, we must ensure we have credible, articulate, and competent ambassadors in place, individuals who not only understand diplomacy but also understand the stakes of national political stability and can command access and credibility in host governments.

Mr. President, your Renewed Hope agenda has inspired institutional and international confidence. Let us now complement that agenda with a renewed diplomatic front.

Thank you, Your Excellency, for your continued leadership and statesmanship.

Respectfully,
Olufemi Ibitoye
Public Affairs Analyst

ibitoyeolufemi3@gmail.com