Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria

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Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
Femi Gbajabiamila and a colleague (cropped).jpg
Incumbent
Femi Gbajabiamila
since 12 June 2019
Legislative Branch of the Federal Government
StyleMr Speaker (informal)
The Honourable (formal)
Member ofNigerian House of Representatives
National Assembly Commission
SeatNational Assembly Complex, Three Arms Zone, Abuja
AppointerIndirect House Election
Term length4 years renewable
Constituting instrumentConstitution of Nigeria
Inaugural holderSir Frederic Metcalfe (Colonial)
Jaja Wachukwu (indigenous)
Formation12 January 1955; 68 years ago (1955-01-12)
SuccessionThird
DeputyDeputy Speaker of the House of Representatives

The speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the Federal House of Representatives of Nigeria, elected by its membership. The House Speaker is third in line of succession to the Nigerian Presidency, after the Vice President of Nigeria and the President of the Senate of Nigeria. The current House Speaker is Femi Gbajabiamila who was elected Speaker of House of Representatives of Nigeria on 12 June 2019.

History

Sir Frederic Metcalfe of Great Britain became the first Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria after its inauguration on 12 January 1955 by John Macpherson. He was replaced by the first indigenous speaker, Jaja Wachuku, in 1959. As Speaker of the House, Wachuku received Nigeria's Instrument of Independence, also known as Freedom Charter, on 1 October 1960, from Princess Alexandra of Kent (Alexandra was Elizabeth II's representative at the Nigerian Independence ceremonies). Chaha Biam hails from Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State. He was elected to the House of Representative on the platform of NPN in the 1983 general elections and was elected as the Speaker of House of Representative in the short-lived second tenure of Alhaji Shehu Shagari, 1 October 1983 – 31 December 1983. Dimeji Bankole is the youngest Speaker in the history of the House of Representatives, elected at the age of 37.[1]

Selection and succession to presidency

The speaker is chosen in an indirect election conducted within the House of Representatives. The line of succession to the Nigerian presidency goes to the Vice President, and then the President of the Senate should both the President and Vice President be unable to discharge the powers and duties of office.[2]The Speaker of the House is the third in line of succession.

List of speakers

Name Term Party
Sir Frederic Metcalfe 1955–1959
Jaja Wachuku 1959–1960 NCNC
Ibrahim Jalo Waziri 1960–1966 NPC
Edwin Ume-Ezeoke 1979–1983 NPN
Chaha Biam 1983 NPN
Agunwa Anaekwe 1992–1993 SDP[3]
Salisu Buhari 1999 PDP
Ghali Umar Na'Abba 1999–2003 PDP
Aminu Bello Masari 2003–2007 PDP
Patricia Etteh 2007 PDP
Dimeji Bankole 2007–2011 PDP
Aminu Waziri Tambuwal 2011–2015 PDP
Yakubu Dogara 2015–2019 APC
Femi Gbajabiamila 2019–present

APC

References

  1. ^ "Nigeria Parliament Elects New Speaker Of The House". www.feedsyndicate.com. Archived from the original on 9 December 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  2. ^ "Nigeria's Constitution of 1999 with Amendments through 2011" (PDF). Constitute Project. Retrieved 8 March 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ "ANAEKWE: UNSUNG HERO OF DEMOCRACY". Nigerian Voice. 25 March 2011. Retrieved 9 March 2022.



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