Recite The Pledge and Become An Ambassador! By Bamidele-Ademola Olateju

2013, in my column I fingered MEDIOCRITY as Nigeria's defining failure. Mediocrity breeds corruption and lets impunity take root. It is entirely mundane and absolutely stupid to ask a Nigerian diplomat to recite the national anthem as a requisite qualification to become Nigeria's Ambassador. It is shameful that such elementary questions that should be reserved for primary and nursery school pupils in civics class, became an important question asked of persons seeking to representing Nigeria in the global arena. It is disturbing that legislators do not understand the implications of designing irrelevant and tangential questions to screen mostly political actors who have no knowledge of diplomatic representation nor comprehension of the norms guiding relations between and among nations.

Asking would be envoys such questions lends credence that our ghetto legislators do not know  what to ask, are mentally lazy or just incompetent as members of the foreign relations/affairs committee! How about asking the diplomats how they will project the domestic and foreign policies of the government they are going to represent? How about asking them questions in global affairs as it relates to Nigeria and any other core policy of this government? How about asking them questions on selling Nigeria in a world that has negative expectations of the country? No Nigeria ambassadors is going to go and sing national anthems in representational duties! How about questions on salvaging Nigeria's name with Boko Haram tainting the country at every turn. For God's sake, these ambassadors will be representing the largest black nation on earth!

How would they canvass international assistance for the fight against terrorism,  corruption and other transnational crimes that have blighted this country? Why must Nigeria be shortchanged at every turn? How do we get the best hands to represent Nigeria at difficult times like these if all that is required of an ambassador is to be able to sing the National anthem? This cycle of mediocrity is what has brought Nigeria to this sorry point. Like every appointment subject to ratification by the Senate, the screening has been reduced to a bow and go process for appointments with international ramifications!

How do we screen out thugs and empty headed party enforcers? This is the same system that produced Musiliu Obanikoro as an ambassador. and may yet produce Dino Melaye in the future! National anthem as a question for people going to engage the world on behalf of nigeria? Give me a break! Our legislators like the rest of us have refused to evolve and be better. What does it take to engage foreign affairs experts, support staff and assistants? They get paid to hire people who can  do research on their behalf and articulate policy positions for them but they will rather pocket the money and pad the budget for more money to line their pockets. Nigeria deserves better than this at this stage and it is heartbreaking.  Ambassadors should be asked critical questions about the nation and it's direction under Buhari and his core policies. Senators should be able to simulate scenarios that will allow them see, how nominees can address a donor gathering or face those interested in assisting Nigeria with her multifaceted challenges. Questions ought to mirror the real life challenges they will face on the job. They should watch how the United States screens its ambassadorial nominees since they love to quote the United States when it comes to demanding benefits and privileges.

Nigerians abroad have complained of poor consular and welfare services by their embassies abroad. From visa application to passport renewal or other consular services the story has always been the same. How would the potential ambassadors change this? How will they ensure the best service delivery to Nigerians by their embassies and the workers in those missions? How? At this very minute, the Nigerian mission New York cannot pay workers and cannot pay bills to generate air conditioning. Their offices are hot as hell during these dog days of Summer. Yet, that mission collects hundreds of thousands of dollars in visa and passport fees, document authentication as well as administrative charges! Why can't those monies be deployed in a transparent manner to service the missions and avoid the kind of embarrassment on the mission in New York? How would the envoys address the issues of service delivery and best global practices in assisting and servicing Nigerians abroad? These are the questions they should have asked, not reciting national anthem nor national pledge or the number of presidential candidates in the last elections or naming states and their capitals.  If we are to move nigeria forward, lawmakers need to get off their lazy behinds, do research on their committees assignments, engage legislative aides knowledgeable in the areas of committee assignments and in the case of the foreign affairs committee, engage foreign affairs experts as legislative aides to avail them of the indepth issues concerning foreign relations as regards Nigeria and ask serious questions that demands the best from would be ambassadors.

Buhari alone cannot do everything. It is a shame that nominees cannot recite the national anthem and the pledge but the issues runs deeper and it speaks to the quality of leaders the society thrusts  up. The real shame are the lazy senators who cannot ask the tough questions. How can singing the national anthem and naming state and capital be the questions Nigerian diplomats are answering to qualify as representatives of Nigeria  in Washington, in Berlin, in London, in Tokyo, in China, in Cairo, in Vienna? Are they going to be reciting anthems and pledges in those places? A lot is really wrong with nigeria. A lot!