The Presidency has officially announced the appointment of a former Minister of External Affairs, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, as the new Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari.
This was revealed by the Personal Assistant to the President on New Media, Bashir Ahmed.
According to reports, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, announced the appointment today at the virtual Federal Executive Council (FEC) Meeting.
The appointment is coming about one month after the death of former Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari.
Meanwhile, Prof Gambari served as the Chairman of the United Nations Special Committee Against Apartheid (1990-1994) before later served as Under-Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Department of Political Affairs between 2005 and 2007.
The Kwara State-born scholar served as the Minister for External Affairs between 1984 and 1985, while he also held several leadership positions at the national and international levels, and has built extensive contacts with governments, as well as public and private institutions, especially in Africa.
He was also on March 4, 2013, appointed the pioneer Chancellor of the Kwara State University; the ceremonial head that presides over convictions to award degrees and also supports the vision of the institution.
Having been decorated with the title of Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) by the Federal Government of Nigeria, the highly respected academician is a member of the Johns Hopkins University’s Society of Scholars.
Prof Gambari has also been a research fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C. and a Resident Scholar at the Bellagio Study and Conference Center; the Rockefeller Foundation-run centre in Italy.
He was also accorded, honoris causa; the title of Doctor of Humane Letters (D.Hum.Litt.) from the University of Bridgeport, USA.
In the meantime the former Chief of Staff, who died of COVID-19 complications was described instrumental to the Buhari-led government since coming into power in 2015.
