US, UK will reject Buratai, other ex-service chiefs as ambassadors, says Ex-NIIA DG, Akinterinwa
Former Director General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Prof Bola Akinterinwa, says there was no assurance that countries like the United States and the United Kingdom who had accused the just sacked service chiefs of crimes against humanity would accept them as diplomats.
The Presidency had on Thursday said the names of the ex-military commanders have been sent to the Senate for confirmation as non career ambassadors.
The nominees are: Gen Abayomi G. Olonisakin (rtd ), Lt Gen Tukur Y. Buratai (rtd), Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar (rtd), and Air Vice Marshal Mohammed S. Usman (rtd).
“When you bring somebody who is perfectly trained to kill to come and engage in diplomatic negotiations at a critical time that globalisation is now a major issue, I think that Mr President is making haste slowly and in this case, he is killing diplomatic initiatives well in advance, this is killing Nigeria softly.”
The former NIIA director general said certain countries like the US and UK which had fingered the immediate past service chiefs of crimes against humanity were not likely to accept the ex-military commanders as ambassadors.