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Adebowale Ibidapo Adefuye (1947 – 2015)

By Editorial Board
09 October 2015   |   2:39 am
PROFESSOR Adebowale Ibidapo Adefuye, foremost diplomat, scholar and Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States of America, who passed on the other day at the age of 68, was in every respect one of the nation’s best foot forward. As a scholar, he had few equals in erudition in his field, and as a diplomat, he…
Adefuye. Photo credit informationng

Adefuye. Photo credit informationng

PROFESSOR Adebowale Ibidapo Adefuye, foremost diplomat, scholar and Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States of America, who passed on the other day at the age of 68, was in every respect one of the nation’s best foot forward.

As a scholar, he had few equals in erudition in his field, and as a diplomat, he was outstanding in thought, words and deeds. Wherever he represented his country, Adefuye made Nigeria proud. When he died, having suffered a seizure, in Washington, D.C,. Nigeria lost one of her best thinkers in foreign affairs and one of the most astute of her diplomats.

Born in Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State in 1947, Adebowale received his first degree in History at the University of Ibadan in 1969. In 1973, he earned a Ph.D. in History from the same University with a dissertation on “The Political History of the Palwo, 1400-1911.”

As a Fulbright scholar, he studied at Columbia University, the University of North Florida and the University of Florida in Gainesville.

Adefuye started his academic career as a lecturer at the University of Lagos, where he quickly rose to the rank of professor, with several published books and articles in reputable journals. Among his publications was a book titled: “History of the Peoples of Lagos State” (1987), and “Culture and Foreign Policy: the Nigerian Example” (1993).

Ambassador Adefuye received his first diplomatic posting in 1987 as Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Jamaica, with concurrent accreditation to Haiti and Belize, a post he held till 1991.

Between 1991 and 1994, he served as Deputy High Commissioner at the Nigerian High Commission in London, United Kingdom, from where he was hired by the Commonwealth Office as Deputy Director of Strategic Planning. Adefuye was with the Commonwealth for 14 years. In 2008, he took a job with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and served as advisor on good governance till 2010.

Ambassador Adefuye was appointed Nigerian Ambassador to the United States of America in 2010 at a time Nigeria’s relations with the United States was at its lowest ebb, following the December 25, 2009 failed attempt by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to blow up a Northwest Airlines flight headed from Amsterdam to Detroit.

Nigeria was labelled as “country of interest” and placed on the terrorism watch list, a development that subjected Nigerians to serious security scrutiny at airports worldwide. Adefuye’s first assignment was to persuade the U.S. to remove Nigeria from the terrorism watch list, which was done, and Nigerians were free once again.

In the heat of the Boko Haram crisis, when America refused to sell arms to Nigeria under the pretext of human rights abuses, Adefuye stood against America’s position and pushed that arms should be sold to Nigeria to enable her confront the insurgents.

When Boko Haram abducted hundreds of innocent Chibok schoolgirls and the BringBackOurGirls campaign was launched,  Adefuye was very outspoken. He organised meetings with various interest groups in the U.S. to explain the true position of things and government’s effort to secure the release of the girls. He also published articles in local and foreign newspapers to sensitise the public.

Adefuye was regarded by many as “The People’s Ambassador” because of his concern for people irrespective of their status and his openness. He made Nigerians in the United States and the other countries where he served have easy access to the diplomatic missions, and never failed in words and deeds to let all citizens know he was there on their behalf.

Adefuye was the only Nigerian Ambassador to the U.S. that hosted two serving Nigerian presidents on State visit to the U.S. He hosted former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2010 at the invitation of President Barack Obama and President Muhammadu Buhari last August.

His successful tenure rekindled the age-long friendship between Nigeria and the U.S., a testimony of which was Buhari’s last visit, which has been described as the most successful by any Nigerian leader.

There is no doubt that Adefuye served Nigeria well. He was a quintessential diplomat, outspoken, energetic and passionate about his job. He was never afraid of taking contrary position against America in Nigeria’s interest. No wonder, he became the rallying point for the Africa’s diplomatic community in the U.S.

Ambassador Adefuye was a rounded diplomat, an intellectual who combined theory with practice. He was very cultural, down to earth and deeply interested in the peoples and cultures of Nigeria.

While describing Nigeria’s relations with America, Adefuye once told New African magazine, “Historically, we’ve had a love-hate relationship with the United States.

We are of strategic importance to America; that no one can deny. They want us to be bastion of democracy, a peaceful nation. If we’re not, they get very angry.”

His patriotism was absolute and his commitment to the people was unwavering. His death has robbed Nigeria of a good diplomat who represented the country excellently. It has robbed humanity of a simply good man.

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