Buhari nominates former Service Chiefs as ambassadors, extends IG’s tenure
…reappoints Joseph as NAIC MD
By Ayo Fadimu
President Muhammadu Buhari has forwarded the names of the immediate past Service Chiefs to the Senate as non-career Ambassadors-Designate.
The President’s spokesman Mr Femi Adesina confirmed this in a statement in Abuja on Thursday.
The presidential aide said already the president had communicated this development in a letter to the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan.
The president said: “In accordance with section 171 (1), (2) (c) & sub-section (4) of 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, I have the honour to forward for confirmation by the Senate, the under-listed five (5) names of nominees as Non-Career Ambassadors-Designate.”
The nominees are: retired Gen. Abayomi Olonisakin, retired Lt.-Gen Tukur Buratai, retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, retired Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, and retired AVM Mohammed Usman.
Until last Tuesday, Olonisakin was Chief of Defence Staff while Buratai was Chief of Army Staff.
Until that day also, Ibas was Chief of Navy, while Abubakar was Chief of Air Force.
The president urged the Senate to give expeditious consideration to the nominations.
In a similar vein, President Buhari on Thursday also approved the extension of the tenure of Mr Mohammed Adamu as the Inspector General of Police (I-G) by three months.
Mr Osaigbovo Ehisienmen, the Press Secretary to the Minister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Mohammed Dingyadi confirmed the approval in an interview in Abuja.
He said the extension was to give room for proper selection process of a successor.
Adamu, the 20th indigenous I-G was appointed on Jan. 15, 2019 by President Muhammad Buhari.
He joined the service of the Nigeria Police on February 1, 1986 and was due for retirement on Feb.1, having attained the mandatory 35 years in service.
However, a legal practitioner who pleaded for anonymity argued that the action of the President, is in contravention of the provisions of the Police Act 2020, which in Section 7 (6) fixes a single term of four years without an option of extension of tenure for the holder of the office of the Inspector-General of Police.
“A person appointed to the office of the Inspector-General of Police shall hold office for four years,” he quoted the act.
Also on Thursday, the President approved the appointment of Mrs Folashade Joseph as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC) for a second term. The reappointment takes effect from April 11, according to a letter signed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sabo Nanono, and made available to Nigerian NewsDirect on Thursday in Abuja.
Nanono, in the letter, stated that Joseph’s reappointment was based on her hard work, dedication, commitment, service delivery and contributions to the progress and uplift of the corporation.
The minister urged Joseph to use her reappointment to bring to bear her wealth of experience in driving the activities of the corporation, in accordance with its mandate, enabling act and subsisting laws.
