Nigerian Leaders since Independence: General Abdulsalami Abubakar (1998-1999)

General Abdulsalami Alhaji Abubakar (born June 13, 1942) was President of Nigeria from June 9, 1998 until May 29, 1999. He succeeded General Sani Abacha upon Abacha's death. Abubakar transferred power to President-elect Olusegun Obasanjo on May 29, 1999.

Abdulsalami Alhaji Abubakar hails from the Gwarii ethnic group and was born in Minna, Niger State. He was educated at Native Authority Primary School in that city, the Provincial Secondary School in Bida, and finally the Technical Institute, Kaduna. After this, he joined the Military. General Abubakar led Nigeria's contingent in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon and eventually rose to the role of Chief of Defence Staff. His wife's name is Fati and they have six children.



President Abdulsalami Abubakar
Abubakar was sworn in as president on 9 June 1998 after the unexpected death of Abacha. He declared a weeklong period of national mourning.

A few days after assuming office, Abubakar promised to hold elections within a year and transfer power to an elected president. He established the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, appointing former Supreme Court Justice Ephraim Akpata as chairman. The INEC held a series of elections first for Local Government Areas in December 1998, then for State Assemblies and Governors, National Assemblies and finally for the President on 27 February 1999. Although efforts were made to ensure that the elections were free and fair, there were widespread irregularities that drew criticism from foreign observers.

Surprising some critics of the country's military, Abubakar kept his word and transferred power to elected President Obasanjo on May 29, 1999. It was during his leadership that Nigeria adopted its new constitution on May 5, 1999, which went into effect when Obasanjo became President.

Compiled with information from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdulsalami_Abubakar