ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC – Opposition Leader Dr. Keith Mitchell Tuesday sought to distance his New National Party (NNP) government from appointing a Nigerian business person as an ambassador at large for Grenada.
Mystery surrounds the appointment of Tochukwu Nwaneri, also known as Tochil Nwaneri, as both the current administration of Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell and the former administration that was voted out of office in the general election in June last year have denied approving his designation.
Nwaner’s name has appeared on an official list of 89 diplomats whose appointment was nullified on August 08, 2023. The
The notice published in the September 22, 2023 edition of the Government Gazette and signed by Roxie McLeish, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, listed the names of the diplomatic appointments.
However, no dates were provided for the start of these appointments, and some still needed a designated country or State. Nwaneri was listed as an Hon Consul with no jurisdiction attached to his name.
At a news conference here on Tuesday, Mitchell said he could not recall any such appointment and had also raised the issue with former cabinet ministers.
“I asked those involved. Most of these things originated through Foreign Affairs before they reached the cabinet, and we asked that security forces check them to know their background. As prime Minister, I hardly ever knew the individuals myself,” said Mitchell, the longest-serving prime Minister in Grenada.
“I have asked around, and none of the cabinet members I have asked could recall the name of that person coming up in the cabinet because I did not want to make a statement saying that it did not happen in our time and then to find out that it did. In every case, they said they did not see that application.”
Dr Mitchell further explained that his administration had adopted a policy that people wanting to become ambassadors should pay US$150,000 to the technical fund. However, before they are accepted, they would be vetted through a due diligence process that involves local and international security forces.
In July 2022, Nwaneri issued a press release published in at least three Nigerian online news sites claiming that Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell appointed him as an Ambassador at Large for Nigeria.
But Prime Minister Mitchell denied the statement, and at a news conference shortly afterward, the newly appointed prime Minister admitted to accepting a courtesy call from Nwaneri and taking a photograph with him.
“When I met the gentleman, I was not under the impression, nor did he convey to me that he was appointed as any diplomat,” Prime Minister Mitchell said then.
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