A former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bolaji Akinyemi has asked the government not to blame the evacuation crisis of Nigerians from Sudan on Egypt.
Akinyemi stated this while speaking in an interview with Arise TV on Monday.
The former Minister of Foreign Affairs said Nigeria should not blame Egypt “for our own dysfunctionality.”
According to him, the federal government must empower the ministry to avoid repeating the diplomatic issues that happened at the Egyptian border during the evacuation of Nigerians from Sudan.
He faulted the arrangement of the Nigerian government in the evacuation process adding that “it does not make sense.”
Akinyemi said, “I’m not happy about the dysfunctionality of the arrangements in Nigeria. Egypt knows only one institution of diplomacy when dealing with Nigeria and that is ministry of foreign affairs.
“That is why we opened an embassy there. So that those that we entrust with those functions would also know the rules on the ground.
“But then, we bring in the NiDCOM and ministry of humanitarian affairs — bodies that Egypt might not have had any relationship with. They now start influencing what will happen in Egypt. It does not make sense.
“Don’t let us blame Egypt for our own dysfunctionality. Empower the ministry of foreign affairs to do its job.
“Then, we can complain if they are derelict in doing that job or not doing it effectively. Interposing the diaspora commission in the foreign field is only going to lead to the kind of problem that we saw.”
