President Bola Tinubu has nominated Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, immediate past sole administrator of Rivers state and former naval chief, as a non-career ambassador.
Tinubu also named Ita Enang, the former senator; Chioma Ohakim, former Imo state first lady; and Abdulrahman Dambazau, former minister of interior and former chief of army staff, as non-career ambassadors
Their names were absent from the earlier batch of ambassadorial nominees released by the presidency.
Tinubu’s latest nominations were conveyed in a letter read on the floor of the senate by Godswill Akpabio during Thursday’s plenary.
In the correspondence, the president urged lawmakers to give the nominees swift consideration to enable the government fill critical diplomatic postings.
Akpabio subsequently referred the list to the senate committee on foreign affairs, with a directive that the panel conclude its screening exercise and report back to the chamber within one week.
The president had nominated Reno Omokri, the former presidential aide; Femi Fani-Kayode, former aviation minister; and Mahmood Yakubu, the immediate past chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as ambassadors.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
