Profile of Nigeria's new leader Buhari

President Mohamadu Buhari

Nigeria's new President Muhammadu Buhari took oath of office on Friday 29th May 2015, promising to carry out his duties faithfully, to the best of his ability, and in accordance with the constitution and always in the interest of the sovereignty, integrity, solidarity, well-being and prosperity of Nigeria.

The oath of office taken by Buhari, was administered by the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Mahmoud Mohammed, and witnessed by a mammoth crowd including international friends of Nigeria and citizens of the West African country who converged at the Eagles Square, venue of the inauguration ceremony in the central area of the Nigerian capital Abuja.

Below is Buhari's profile:

He is a retired Major General of the Nigerian Army and former head of state of Nigeria, for almost two years, having led a military coup d'etat that ended a democratic government in December 1983.

The 72 year-old Nigeria leader had unsuccessfully sought votes to be Nigerian president in 2003, 2007 and 2011 elections held in the West African country. He was lucky the fourth time, having defeated his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, in an election conducted on March 28.

Buhari, who contested the election on the platform of the former opposition All Progressives Congress party, was officially declared president-elect on Wednesday, April 1, 2015 -- the first time in Nigeria's history that a sitting president was defeated at the polls.

He won the election by a margin of 2.57 million votes in the national polls conducted by Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission.

Buhari, a muslim, is a native of the northwestern state of Katsina, and of the Fulani ethnic background.

He joined the Nigerian army in 1961, one year after Nigeria gained independence from its British colonial masters. In the army, he rose through the ranks and attended several military courses in Nigeria and abroad, including the Defense Services Staff College, Wellington, India, and the U.S. Army War College in Pennyslvania.

He served as Military Secretary of the Nigerian Army Headquarters between 1978 and 1979, and was a member of the Nigerian Supreme Military Council in the same period.

A former military governor of Nigeria's North Eastern State, Buhari led social, economic and political improvement in Bauchi, Borno and (defunct) Gongola states.

During the presidential campaign, Buhari denied his role in the December 1983 coup and clearly explained to Nigerians that as a military leader turned democrat, he was ready to take responsibility for all military actions considered as "undemocratic" or "anti-people."

Source: news.xinhuanet.com