Africa News
Nigerian president takes office with anti-corruption agenda
May 30, 2011, 9:59 GMT
Abuja- Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in Sunday for a four-year term and vowed to tackle corruption, which he described as the root of underdevelopment in Nigeria.
Amid tight security in an elaborate ceremony witnessed in Abuja by more than 20 heads of state and government, Jonathan, 53, took the oath of office from Chief Justice of the Federation Aloysius Katsina-Alu.
Jonathan's deputy, Namani Sambo, was sworn in earlier.
Jonathan listed education, electricity, effective transportation and job creation as his priorities, along with agriculture and food security. He promised to rebuild infrastructure, which is mostly in a deplorable state nationwide.
On April 18, Jonathan was declared the winner of the 2011 presidential election, but his victory set off violence in northern Nigeria.
A member of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Jonathan was governor of Bayelsa from December 2005-May 2007, when he became vice president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
On January 13, 2010, a Federal High Court handed him the power to carry out state affairs while President Umaru Yar'Adua received medical treatment in a Saudi Arabian hospital. After Yar'Adua's death on May 5, 2010, Jonathan was sworn in as president.
Born in Otueke in southern Nigeria to a family of canoe makers, Jonathan holds a doctorate in zoology with specialities in hydrobiology and fisheries.
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