Professor Ibrahim Agboola Gambari, the newly appointed Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari has continued to be in the news since Monday evening when the rumour of his appointment broke out.
Initially, uncertainties surrounded his appointment until today, Wednesday, May 13, 2020, when the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha announced Prof. Gambari’s appointment as the new Chief of Staff to President Buhari, before the commencement of the Federal Executive Council meeting.
The appointment of Prof Gambari came barely a month after the demise of the late Abba Kyari who died following complications of the novel coronavirus in April 17, 2020.
Meanwhile, it could be said that only a few Nigerians know about Prof Gambari, who was not among the candidates being tipped to take over as the new Chief of Staff to President Buhari.
Below are a few things you might not know about the newly appointed Chief of Staff to Buhari:
1. Professor Ibrahim Gambari, CFR, born November 24, 1944, in Ilorin, Kwara State, is a Nigerian scholar and diplomat.
2. He attended the popular King’s College in Lagos State.
3. He attended the obtained B. Sc. (Economics) degree (1968) with specialisation in International Relations from London School of Economics.
4. He attended Columbia University, New York, USA where he bagged an M.A. (1970) and Ph. D. (1974) in Political Science/International Relations.
5. Prof Gambari served as the Minister for External Affairs between 1984 and 1985.
6. He started his teaching career in 1969 at City University of New York.
7. He also worked at University of Albany.
8. The 75-year-old Prof Gambari also taught at the second largest university in Africa, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), in Zaria, Kaduna State.
9. He was a Visiting Professor at three universities in Washington, D.C.: Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Georgetown University and Howard University between From 1986 to 1989.
10. He has likewise 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.
11. The University of Bridgeport accorded, honoris causa, the title of Doctor of Humane Letters (D.Hum.Litt.) on Prof Gambari.
12. Prof. Gambari is a member of the Johns Hopkins University’s Society of Scholars.
13. He was appointed on June 10, 2005, and assumed the post on July 1 of that year as the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations (USG) for the Department of Political Affairs (DPA).
14. The secretary-general of United Nations Ban Ki-moon and the chairperson of the African Union Commission appointed Prof Gambari as Joint African Union-United Nations Special Representative for Darfur effective from 1 January 2010.
15. Prof Gambari is until he is appointed the CoS to President Buhari the Special Adviser on the International Compact with Iraq and Other Issues for the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
16. Prof Gambari was named by the Kwara State Governor, AbdulFatah Ahmad, as the pioneer Chancellor of the Kwara State University, making him the ceremonial head of the university on March 4, 2013.
17. Prof Gambari is the co-chair of the Albright-Gambari Commission.
18. The Nigerian Scholar was decorated with the title of Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) by the Government of Nigeria.
19. And Professor Gambari was officially announced as the Chief of Staff to the President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, May 13, 2020.
