Godswill Akpabio, the President of the Senate, has said that the Ondo South senatorial seat is open because Senator Jimoh Ibrahim has been named Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN).
Akpabio made the announcement during the plenary session on Tuesday. He said that the declaration goes into effect right away, as required by the Constitution.
The Senate President also told the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to hold a by-election to fill the empty seat within 30 days.
The National Assembly must tell the electoral body whenever there is a vacancy, according to the 1999 Constitution (as amended), so that a new election can be held.
It was known that Ibrahim started his job as a diplomat at the UN on April 20 by giving his Letters of Credence to António Guterres, the UN Secretary-General.
The presentation happened at the UN Headquarters in New York City, in the United States.
Kimiebi Ebienfa, a spokesperson for the Foreign Affairs Ministry, said that the move was a big step forward for Nigeria’s diplomatic relations with other countries around the world.
Ibrahim is now fully qualified to represent Nigeria at the UN because he has officially sent in the letters.
He is expected to clearly state the country’s views on important international issues and take part in negotiations with many other countries.
Before he was named, Ibrahim was a businessman and politician who represented the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Ondo South Senatorial District.
