Ambassadors-Designate Get letters Of Credence

Twenty Nigerian Ambassadors-designate have been accepted by their countries of primary assignments and communicated with “Letters of Agreement”.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, said the countries include United States, United Kingdom, South Africa and Belgium.

With this positive development, President Umaru Yar‘Adua was expected to issue the affected ambassadors-designate their letters of credence before the end of the month.

The minister also dispelled fears that those whose letters of acceptance were still pending had either been rejected or were facing some problems.

He assured that “they do not have any problem. It is just the flow of bureaucracy. Eventually, all the ambassadors will go to their countries of postings. ‘‘

Maduekwe expressed the confidence that none of the ambassadors-designate would face any problem, because a thorough screening was carried out by the Senate when they were nominated.

He attributed the delay in the receipt of other letters of acceptance to bureaucracy, saying the development did not in any way suggest that one ambassador-designate was better than the other.

According to him, each letter of acceptance was being treated on its merit, adding that the President could not sign letters of credence in a vacuum.

The Minister was quoted as saying: ``we can only take letters of credence on behalf of those we have received their letters of acceptance. We cannot be taking letters in pieces to the President to sign if they are just two or three, so we have to wait for a sizeable number.‘‘

He appealed to the media to exercise restraint by not putting those awaiting their acceptance letters under undue pressure.

 

NP/Qasim