Why Tinubu’s Ambassadors Face Rejection by Host Nations

Storms may be brewing for many of President Bola Tinubu’s recently nominated ambassadors who face the prospect of being rejected by host countries due to time constraints on their tenure, findings by Sunday PUNCH have revealed.

High-ranking officials in the Presidency and the foreign service disclosed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was grappling with the challenge of securing agrément, the formal consent of receiving states, for the nominees.

According to them, several countries may insist that ambassadors have a minimum tenured period of a year or two tied to the life of the sending country’s administration.

With the next presidential election scheduled for February 2027 and Tinubu’s first tenure set to conclude in May that year, the officials expressed concerns that host countries may be reluctant to accept many of the envoys for now.

A highly-placed foreign service official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said, “The problem we have, which we are trying at the moment to see what we can do about, is that most countries, like India, will tell you that if an ambassador has less than one year or two, they may have issues. Usually, one year counts to the end of any current administration.

“So, that is where there might be a challenge. By the time they get the agrément, some of these ambassadors will have just a few months left. We are trying to see how we can deal with that.”

Career foreign service officers often serve a tour of approximately three years per ambassadorship.

Under Article 4 of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, receiving states must grant consent before any ambassador can be accredited.

However, receiving states are not obliged to give reasons to the sending state for a refusal of agrément.

This means countries can reject an ambassador nominee without explanation, including for tenure-related concerns, at the state’s discretion.

In September 2023, barely four months into his administration, President Tinubu concluded a sector-wide reassessment of Nigeria’s foreign policy, which saw career and non-career ambassadors recalled from 109 missions, comprising 76 embassies, 22 high commissions and 11 consulates; leaving the missions without substantive heads for over two years.

The Federal Government cited the need for “world-class efficiency and quality” in foreign service delivery as justification for the mass recall.

Only Nigeria’s Permanent Representatives to the United Nations in New York and Geneva were exempted due to the imminent UN General Assembly at the time.

The Ambassador to the Niger Republic was also exempted due to the unconstitutional change of government in the neighbouring country.

However, it was not until November 2025, more than 26 months later, that President Tinubu forwarded names of ambassadorial nominees to the Senate for confirmation.

The first batch of three nominees, including Ayodele Oke, Amin Dalhatu, and Colonel Lateef Are (retd.), was transmitted to the National Assembly on November 26, 2025.

Days later, on November 29, the President submitted an additional 32 names, comprising 17 non-career diplomats and 15 career officers.

As of the time of this report, the President has nominated at least 67 persons to fill various positions.

On January 22, 2026, the President confirmed the postings of Oke as the ambassador-designate to France, Are as the ambassador-designate to the United States of America, and Dalhatu as the high commissioner-designate to the United Kingdom.

Other nominees are expected to be deployed in strategic nations, including China, India, the UAE, Qatar, South Africa and multilateral institutions such as the United Nations, UNESCO, and the African Union.

However, officials say that with the late announcement and the prolonged confirmation process, confirmed ambassadors may struggle to secure acceptance from their host countries in time. This is due to considerations of the tenure of the administration in the sending country.

Another source explained that the lengthy bureaucratic process might compound the challenge.

“You know, this process is something we would have concluded long ago. But because the announcement was made late last year, they had to go for their screening,” the official said.

The source added that after receiving their postings, ambassadors must attend a mandatory retreat.

They must also collect personalised post reports from the foreign ministry and then wait for agrément from the receiving states.

An official in the foreign service noted that some ambassadors may not commence their tours of duty until August 2026. This would leave them with barely nine months before the next election.

“Some people may not go before August because some countries will take their time to do background checks. When you send the name, sometimes they will respond, ‘Send someone else.’ And when you insist on asking why, they will give you their own report of their background checks.

“Or they may just ignore you for six months. The person will be waiting until you go to their ministry of internal affairs and ask why, to say, ‘we demand to know the reason.’

“Then they will tell you why, based on their background checks. So, it is a long process,” the official disclosed.

The source noted that the background verification at the receiving country must be completed before the prospective ambassador can begin their tour of duty.

Meanwhile, a Presidency official confirmed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was handling all the processes, including the tenure hurdle.

“As far as I know, everything is now with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The President has given them approval to send names to the countries. It is when those countries accept that we will release a statement saying which country each person is going to,” the source stated.

The official explained that the FG would withhold announcements until an agrément was secured.

“When you say someone is going to a certain country, what if that country asks for a change? They can reject it. In another one or two weeks, we will get more clarity on those who have been accepted,” the source confirmed.

But another foreign ministry official noted that the FG was working to expedite the process.

“It’s concerning to them (nominees) too. But we are working to see if we can fast-track it,” the official assured.

Nigeria’s foreign missions have been without ambassadors since September 2023.

Critics have warned that the country risks international isolation.

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, had previously attributed the delay to funding challenges, currency fluctuations affecting foreign missions, and the President’s focus on economic reforms.

‘Host countries only being pragmatic’

Speaking with our correspondent, a former ambassador to Singapore, Ambassador Ogbole Amedu-Ode, said receiving states considering Nigeria’s political calendar were simply being pragmatic

“The underlying word here is pragmatism. Those receiving states are just being pragmatic if they take that view because the next round of general elections is in a year from now, in February and March,” Ode said.

He added, “The question is now about an envoy from a president who is facing an election in a year. Elections, no matter how we think we understand them, can go either way.

“So, why receive letters of credence from a principal envoy from a President who has just one year and some months remaining for his first term in office? So, they may dilly-dally in issuing an agrément. The way it usually plays out is that they may want to delay issuing an agrément for an incoming ambassador.”

Amedu-Ode described the administration’s delay in nominating ambassadors as a mistake.

“The mistake has been made by the current administration already because they shouldn’t have waited two to three years into their term before nomination, screening, and deployment of heads of missions.

“Technically speaking, when nominations are made, it is typical for the ministry to request agrément from the receiving states before announcing the posting. That way, in case an envoy is rejected, it does not become an embarrassment,” he noted.

‘Political appointees may be affected’

However, Nigeria’s former envoy to Algeria, Mohammed Mabdul, noted that friendly nations were unlikely to reject Nigerian nominees outright.

He said, “The thing is that the receiving government will not have an issue as long as it is a friendly government, since the issues of diplomacy are often reciprocal.

“The way you treat the receiving country is the way they will treat you too when you are sending yours. They tend to be very careful to ensure that, as long as there is no drastic problem in the request, they will approve it, especially in countries that are very friendly to Nigeria.

“Those will not be a problem. Even if there were side complaints, it would not be in a manner that would warrant a rejection.”

The former envoy also drew a distinction between career and political appointees, noting that the latter faced greater challenges.

“We have two categories of appointees, career and political appointees. For career ambassadors, that is their job. They can move at any time. They can be redeployed. It is their career. Once you are a career officer, you are part of the diplomatic arrangement. So, there would be no issue there.

“But the political appointees are the problem. Once received and accredited, they are usually expected to remain for two to three years. But with the next election in just a year now, there is the possibility that they may start returning to participate in campaigns. So, they may not make any serious impact with their posting.

“The political appointees may not be able to settle down and do their work before another election cycle would start. But again, after the election, even if they are to be recalled, it would not be immediately. After the election, they will remain there until handover. And even if they are recalled, they will be given three months to leave,” he stated.