The speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the Federal House of Representatives of

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, elected by its membership. The House Speaker is third in line of succession to the Nigerian Presidency, after the

Vice President of Nigeria The vice president of Nigeria is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the federal government of Nigeria, after the president of Nigeria, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. Officially styled vice president ...

and the

President of the Senate of Nigeria The president of the Nigerian Senate is the presiding officer of the Senate of Nigeria, elected by its membership. The senate president is second in line of succession to the Nigerian presidency, after the Vice President of Nigeria. The current ...

. The current House Speaker is

Femi Gbajabiamila Olufemi Hakeem Gbajabiamila (born 25 June 1962), is a Nigerian lawyer and politician. A member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gbajabiamila has served as Speaker of the House of Representatives since 2019. Early life and education Olu ...

who was elected Speaker of House of Representatives of Nigeria on 12 June 2019.

History

Sir Frederic Metcalfe of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

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 Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

Jaja Wachuku Jaja Anucha Wachuku (1 January 1918 – 7 November 1996), a Royal family, Royal Prince of Ngwaland, "descendant of 20 generations of African Eze, chiefs in the Igbo country of Eastern Nigeria," was a Pan-Africanist, and a Nigerian politician, ...

, in 1959. As Speaker of the House, Wachuku received Nigeria's Instrument of

Independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

, also known as Freedom Charter, on 1 October 1960, from

Princess Alexandra of Kent Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy (Alexandra Helen Elizabeth Olga Christabel; born 25 December 1936) is a member of the British royal family. Queen Elizabeth II and Alexandra were first cousins through their fathers, King George V ...

(Alexandra was

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

's representative at the Nigerian Independence ceremonies).

Chaha Biam Benjamin Chaha (1940 – 9 March 2022) was a Nigerian politician who was the second Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria The speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the Federal House of Representative ...

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 Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari (25 February 1925 – 28 December 2018), titled Turakin Sokoto from 1962, was the first democratically elected President of Nigeria, after the transfer of power by military head of state General Olusegun Obasanjo in ...

, 1 October 1983 – 31 December 1983.

Dimeji Bankole Sabur Oladimeji "Dimeji" Bankole (born 14 November 1969) is a Nigerian politician who served as the 9th Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria. Elected at the age of 37, Bankole is the youngest Speaker in the history of the House ...

is the youngest Speaker in the history of the House of Representatives, elected at the age of 37.

Selection and succession to presidency

The speaker is chosen in an

indirect election An indirect election or ''hierarchical voting'' is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office (direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the old ...

conducted within the House of Representatives. The line of succession to the Nigerian presidency goes to the

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

, and then the

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for e ...

should both the President and Vice President be unable to discharge the powers and duties of office. The Speaker of the House is the third in line of succession.

List of speakers

References

Official website of the House of RepresentativesAssemblyonline, news agency on Nigeria's National Assembly

Chaha Biam speaker 1983

Speakers Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

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