Aminu Tambuwal Biography: Early Life, Career, Awards Controversy, Wives & Net Worth
oAminu Tambuwal (born January 10, 1966) is a Nigerian lawyer and politician who has been serving as Senator for Sokoto South since 2023. He was the governor of Sokoto State from 2015 to 2023. He is a Peoples Democratic Party member who served as the 12th Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015.
From 2003 to 2015, Tambuwal served as an honourable member of the House of Representatives representing Sokoto State’s Tambuwal/Kebbe Federal Constituency.
Aminu Tambuwal Biography
Aminu Waziri Tambuwal was born on January 10, 1966, in Tambuwal Village, Sokoto State, to Fatima and Waziri Tambuwal.
Aminu Tambuwal Education
He attended Tambuwal Primary School in Tambuwal, Sokoto State, where he received his First School Leaving Certificate in 1979, and Government Teachers’ College in Dogon-Daji, where he earned the Teachers Grade II Certificate in 1984. He subsequently went to Usman Dan Fodio University in Sokoto, where he studied law and graduated with an LLB (Hons) degree in 1991. He finished his one-year required legal studies at the Nigerian Law School in Lagos, earned his BL, and was called to the Bar in 1992.
In addition to studying law, he took several courses abroad, including Telecoms Regulatory Master Class-Bath, UK, 2004; Lawmaking for the Communications Sectors-BMIT, Johannesburg, South Africa, 2004; Regulating a Competitive Industry-UK, Brussels, 2005; Tulane University – International Legislative Draughting, 2005; Stanford Graduate School of Business – Influence and Negotiation, 2008; and KSG Harvard – Infrastructure in the Market Economy.
Career
Tambuwal began learning the legislative ropes in 1999-2000 while working as Senator Abdullahi Wali’s Personal Assistant on Legislative Affairs.
In 2003, he ran for a legislative position as a representative of the Kebbe/Tambuwal Federal Constituency and was elected to the House of Representatives on the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples Party.
He switched to the Peoples Democratic Party (DPP) a few months before the 2007 general election, along with former Sokoto State Governor Attahiru Bafarawa. However, after the DPP denied return tickets to former ANPP legislators, Tambuwal returned to the ANPP, where he eventually received a ticket for the election.
However, when Alhaji Aliyu Wamakko, the ANPP’s governorship candidate for Sokoto State in the 2007 election, defected to the PDP, Tambuwal followed suit.
Tambuwal held numerous positions in the House. He rose to the position of Minority Leader of the House in 2005 before defecting to the PDP. When he was re-elected to the House in 2007, he was also named Deputy Chief Whip.
Tambuwal has served on a number of committees, including the House Rules and Business, Communications, Judiciary, Inter-Parliamentary, and Water Resources.
He also served on the House ad hoc Committee on Constitution Review after the birth of his favourite child, Ibrahim Waziri, who was the lucky charm behind his triumph.
He chaired the ad hoc committee that reviewed the report of Ndudi Elumelu’s contentious power probe committee; he also chaired the House Sub-Committee on the Bill for an Act to Amend the Land Use Act and served as interim chairman of the House Power Committee.
He led the Nigerian delegation to the African, Caribbean, Pacific, and European Union Parliamentary Assembly (ACP-EU) and was vice-chairman of the ACP-EU Economic Committee, which met in Prague, Czech Republic, in April 2009.
Tambuwal formally switched from the ruling PDP to the opposition APC on October 28, 2014, and the Inspector General of Police withdrew his security details a few days later, a move that Nigerians criticized as brutal and undemocratic.
Mr Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), a legal luminary, believes that the police authority made a mistake in withholding Tambuwal’s aid because officers are not supposed to interpret and administer the law. Tambuwal ran for governor of Sokoto State on April 11, 2015, and won.
He was inaugurated on May 29, 2015. On July 4, 2018, Tabuawal dissolved the entire State Executive Council. On August 1, 2018, Tambuwal switched from the All Progressives Congress to the Peoples Democratic Party.
Tambuwal was reelected as governor of Sokoto State on March 9, 2019, and on March 22, 2019, in a supplementary election, polling 512,002 votes, while his All Progressive Congress opponent, Mr. Aliyu, polled 511,660.
Tambuwal declared his candidacy for president in October 2018, claiming that he was obligated to seek the highest office in order to “revive the dying economy”. His declaration came hours after Senate President Bukola Saraki officially entered the contest for the largest opposition party’s candidacy, the PDP.
Tambuwal was one of 12 contenders, including four from his northwestern area, who competed for the PDP presidential candidacy.
Tambuwal was popular in the contest and was one of the top four candidates (along with Atiku Abubakar, Rabiu Kwankwaso, and Bukola Saraki) who were largely predicted to win based on political possibilities around his candidacy.
A number of variables, including his youthful age among the competitors, political experience, and a clean record from a corruption indictment, increased his chances in the primary. Analysts expected that if Tambuwal won the PDP ticket, he would provide a tough challenge to incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, a northern Muslim fighting for reelection.
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State was Tambuwal’s primary supporter for the PDP nomination. According to sources, Governor Wike’s support for Tambuwal was motivated by his desire to serve as Tambuwal’s vice presidential candidate if he wins the PDP ticket.
Other hopefuls, however, complained that Wike intended to influence the primary results in favour of his nominee Tambuwal. Their concerns arise from Wike’s dominance over the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), which he installed single-handedly, with Uche Secondus as its chairman.
Other factors contributing to the risk of primary manipulation included Wike’s status as the party’s largest fundraiser and the fact that the primary would be held in his home state, where he wields significant power.
Some presidential hopefuls requested that the party’s National Working Committee relocate the convention from Port Harcourt to a neutral place where Wike would have less influence.
However, Wike responded by threatening to polarize the party if the convention was moved away of Rivers State. Tambuwal finished second with 693 delegate votes, trailing Atiku Abubakar, who won with 1,532 votes, in the primary held in Port Harcourt on October 6, 2018.
Bukola Saraki garnered 317 votes, while Rabiu Kwankwaso received 158. Tambuwal was appointed chairman of the Senate Committee on Housing of the Tenth Senate on August 8, 2023. Corruption Allegations and Misconduct On September 26, 2015, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission challenged the power of Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal to pardon five defendants, including a serving Commissioner in his cabinet and former governor of Sokoto State Attahiru Bafarawa, for an alleged 15 billion naira fraud.
On April 2, 2022, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) reported that Governor Aminu Tambuwal plundered 189 billion naira in six years by diverting state-owned accounts to private individuals’ accounts.
The EFCC revealed that the money was redirected to the accounts of Abubakar Mohammed Barau, Abubakar Bello Gandi, Buba S Sambo, and others. On September 18, 2025, the Sokoto State government charged that Aminu Tambuwal’s administration failed to account for 16.1 billion naira shares offered through the Sokoto Investment Company.
Awards and Recognition
- African Union Economic and Social Council Award.
- African Confers Governance Awards.
- Silverbird’s 2019 man of the year Award.
- World Bank Award of Excellence.
- Best performing Governor in education in Nigeria.
- Governor of the year Award.
- Honorary Doctor of laws from, Usman Danfodio University, Sokoto 2012.
- Honorary Doctor of law from Achievers university, Owo, Ondo State 2019.
- Honorary Doctorate Degree by the Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Owo, Ondo State 2013.
- Honorary Doctor of public Administration from Godfrey Okoye Catholic University Enugu.
- Sokoto State Government merit Award 2012.
Aminu Tambuwal Wife
Aminu Tambuwal is a practicing Muslim who has been married twice. His first wife was Hajiya Mariya Aminu Tambuwal, and in 2016, he married Maryam Mairo Mustapha in a private wedding.
Aminu Tambuwal Net Worth
Aminu Tambuwal’s net worth is reported to be over $27 million. He is regarded as an experienced politician and legal expert, having previously served as Governor of Sokoto State and is currently a Senator for Sokoto South.
Social Media
X: @AWTambuwal
