Nigerian High Commissioner To UK, Tafida, Bows Out
Dr. Dalhatu Sarki Tafida
AFTER seven years as the Nigerian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (UK), Dr. Dalhatu Sarki Tafida on Thursday bowed out of the office he has occupied since 2008, when the late President Umaru Yar’ Adua appointed and sent him over to serve.
A one-time personal physician to Second Republic President, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, Tafida, who is now the longest-serving Nigerian High Commissioner to the UK, was honoured in an unusual way – and perhaps the first of its kind when the banking hall of the Northumberland Avenue office of the Mission was named after him.
The Head of Information at the embassy, Simon Ogah, confirmed this to The Guardian yesterday, noting that the banking hall was renamed after the soft spoken, but hard working Second Republic senator, who is set to leave for Nigeria today.
Prior to biding goodbye to staff and members of the embassy, the Nigerian community had treated him and his wife to a series of activities and send off parties in the last couple of days.
Tafida, during his time brought changes to the once notoriously chaotic embassy and also got rid of a passport racket that dragged the name of the mission in the mud, while ripping off UK-based Nigerians who wanted to get new passports.
During his last media session last Monday, he disclosed how he personally requested that the insider who was collaborating with others to charge between £500 and £700 for Nigerian passport was recalled to Nigeria, by personally taking a letter to Abuja to ensure it got to the right person. “People were paying between £500 to £700 to an account,” he revealed on Monday, noting that he wanted “the culprit removed, and he was removed.”
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2 Comments
Congratulations sir, a meritorious service to your fatherland, thank you, wish you well in your future endeavours. Let me also use this opportunity to say that we have also a very good team of diplomats in Moscow, Russia, where after i payed the US$106 online fee for a new electronic passport, i was not asked to pay any extra kobo till i was issued my passport, within about four(4) hours I landed in Moscow.
Dr.Tafida , the story you are sharing is not cheering enough to me because the matter should have been officially investigated and the person bought to book for corruption. Nigerians being what we are, there was the possibility that the person was framed up in order to remove him and implant a favorite . It is a known and an established fact that tribal hegemony prevails in all our Embassies . The officer will be ascending the ladder in Abuja and one day finds his way back to London on a higher capacity. I wish you a pleasant retirement life in Allah name .
We will review and take appropriate action.