The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s newly released list of ambassadorial nominees, raising particular concern over the inclusion of the immediate past Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu.
According to a statement issued by its spokesperson, Ini Ememobong, the PDP described the list of 32 nominees as “scandalous.” The party said many Nigerians were disappointed by the nomination of Prof. Yakubu, alleging that his tenure at INEC was marked by “double-speak, inconsistencies, and unfulfilled promises,” which the PDP claims contributed to the emergence of the current administration.
“To offer him an ambassadorial appointment at a time like this exemplifies a skewed reward system,” the PDP said. “We suspect it is intended as an incentive to the new INEC Chairman to deliver flawed elections in 2027 in expectation of future rewards. This is absolutely scandalous and completely unacceptable.”
President Tinubu transmitted the list of nominees—comprising both career and non-career diplomats—to the Senate on Saturday for confirmation.
Alongside Yakubu, the list includes former presidential aide Reno Omokri; former Minister of Aviation Femi Fani-Kayode; former Abia State Governor Okezie Ikpeazu; former Enugu State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; former Oyo First Lady, Fatima Florence Ajimobi; former Lagos commissioner Lola Akande; and former Nigerian Ambassador to the Holy See, Paul Oga Adikwu, among others.
However, the PDP dismissed several of the nominees as “disgraced propagandists, characterless politicians, and public officials widely viewed negatively by Nigerians and the international community for integrity deficits and anti-democratic tendencies.” The party— which governed Nigeria from 1999 to 2015—described the nominations as a “sad commentary” on the state of Nigeria’s diplomatic representation.
Calling the list “reprehensible and scandalous,” the PDP argued that the choices reflect President Tinubu’s values, adding that the lengthy delay before the nominations were released “speaks to the paucity of excellent people within his reach.”
The party insisted that Nigeria deserves higher standards in its diplomatic representatives, warning that appointing individuals with “tainted political profiles” would damage the country’s global standing.
Consequently, the PDP called on President Tinubu to withdraw the list and submit new nominees “with stellar democratic credentials and high moral standing, capable of commanding global respect.”
