Nigeria, Feb. 17 -- A country that cannot follow its own rules cannot expect the world to take it seriously. And yet, here we are again, turning an avoidable mistake into a national embarrassment.

Nigeria's top military officers were denied Canadian visas and instead of addressing the issue with quiet diplomacy, we launched into outrage. But let's be clear. This was not a diplomatic insult. It was a failure of basic protocol.

Canada, like any serious nation, requires a Note Verbale, an official communication from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to process visas for high ranking military officials. It is not just paperwork. It is a guarantee that the Nigerian government has approved the trip. Without it, no responsible country would gra...