President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, 29 governors and their deputies will take their oath of office today. However, Daily Trust reports that some of the outgoing governors have already handed over the baton of leadership to their successors ahead of time.

President Buhari and his running mate Osinbajo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) would be sworn-in today at the Eagle Square in Abuja for a second term. President Buhari had defeated candidates of 73 other political parties, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February 23 election.

Twelve new governors will take the oath of office for the first time, while 17 others who won a second term in the March 9 elections would also be sworn in. The results of the election showed that only APC and PDP produced governors out of the over 90 political parties that fielded candidates.

The first term governors include Umaru Fintiri (PDP, Adamawa), Prof. Babagana Zulum (APC, Borno), Bala Mohammed (PDP, Bauchi), Inuwa Yahaya (APC, Gombe), Emeka Ihedioha (PDP, Imo), Babajide Sanwo-Olu APC, Lagos), Dapo Abiodun (APC, Ogun), Seyi Makinde (PDP, Oyo), Abdulrazaq AbdulRahman (APC, Kwara), Engr. Abdullahi Sule (APC, Nasarawa), Mai-Mala Buni (APC, Yobe) and Bello Mutawalle (PDP, Zamfara).

Returning governors who would be sworn in today include Okezie Ikpeazu (PDP, Abia), David Umahi (PDP, Ebonyi), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (PDP, Enugu), Udom Emmanuel (PDP, Akwa Ibom), Ben Ayade (PDP, Cross River), Ifeanyi Okowa (PDP, Delta), Nyesom Wike (PDP, Rivers), Samuel Ortom (PDP, Benue), Simon Lalong (APC, Plateau), Abubakar Bello (APC, Niger), Darius Ishaku (PDP, Taraba), Nasir el-Rufai (APC, Kaduna), Abdullahi Umar Ganduje (APC, Kano), Aminu Masari (APC, Katsina), Abubakar Bagudu (APC, Kebbi), Mohammed Badaru Abubakar (APC, Jigawa) and Aminu Tambuwal (PDP, Sokoto).

With last Friday’s Supreme Court decision, the PDP has 15 states, while the ruling APC has 14 out of the 29 where governorship election held.

Governorship elections would be held in Kogi and Bayelsa states in November this year, Ondo and Edo in 2020; Anambra in 2021 and Osun and Ekiti in 2022.

•Excerpted from a Daily Trust report.

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