The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of breaching diplomatic protocol in the announcement of newly posted ambassadors.
The opposition party described the development as a diplomatic blunder and another indication of what it called the government’s incompetence in handling foreign relations.
In a statement issued on Friday, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the announcement of ambassadorial postings before securing the required approval from host countries violated established diplomatic procedures.
According to Abdullahi, global diplomatic practice requires a sending country to first obtain the consent of the receiving nation — known as agrément — before formally announcing the appointment of an ambassador.
He explained that the process is clearly outlined under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, particularly Article 4, which mandates that a sending state must seek the approval of the host country before publicly naming a head of mission.
“After spending nearly three years in office, and even three months after the Senate confirmed the ambassadorial nominees, the latest announcement from the State House appears to have reversed the proper order of things,” Abdullahi said.
“Under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, particularly Article 4, a sending state must first obtain the consent, known as agrément, of the receiving state before officially appointing or announcing a head of mission,” he added.
The ADC spokesperson noted that requests for agrément are usually made quietly through diplomatic channels to avoid embarrassment in the event that the receiving country rejects a nominee.
“By announcing appointments and then requesting consent, it indicates that the government does not know what it is doing,” he said.
The party warned that such an approach could expose Nigeria to diplomatic embarrassment, since host countries reserve the right to accept or reject ambassadorial nominees after conducting their own background checks.
ADC also recalled what it described as a similar mistake by the government in the past when ambassadorial postings to countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States and France were publicly announced.
The party further criticised what it described as delays in the process, questioning why it took more than three months after the Senate’s confirmation of the nominees for the government to begin requesting agrément.
Abdullahi also expressed concern over the number of ambassadors announced, noting that Nigeria maintains about 109 diplomatic missions worldwide but only 65 ambassadors were named.
“Nigeria maintains 109 diplomatic missions around the world, yet the government has only announced 65 ambassadors. What happens to the remaining 44 missions?” he queried.
The party warned that leaving many missions without ambassadors could weaken Nigeria’s diplomatic presence at a time when strong international engagement is needed.
