Lamido Mustapha Sule

Lamido Lamido (born 30 August 1948) is a Nigerian politician who served as the governor of Jigawa State from 2007 to 2015. He previously served as the foreign affairs minister of Nigeria from 1999 to 2003. He is a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

In 2015, Lamido and his two sons were arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on allegations of misappropriating approximately ₦1.35 billion from the Jigawa State government during his tenure as governor. Lamido was born on 30 August 1948 in Bamaina, Birnin Kudu Local Government Area of Jigawa State, Nigeria. Lamido entered politics as a member of the left-of-center People's Redemption Party (PRP) in the Nigerian Second Republic. He represented Birnin Kudu at the House of Representatives from 1979 to 1983.

During the Nigerian Third Republic, Lamido became National Secretary of the Social Democratic Party. He received criticism for his handling of the June 12, 1993 presidential elections won by Moshood Abiola, who was prevented from taking office. When the military ruler General Sani Abacha announced his plan to return to democracy, Lamido was a founding member of the Social Progressive Party, and was National Secretary of the new party. He was imprisoned in 1998 by Abacha for criticizing Abacha’s plan to perpetuate himself in office.

After Abacha's unexpected death in June 1998, General Abdulsalami Abubakar announced a revised transition strategy and new parties were formed to contest the 1999 elections. Lamido became a member of the PDP. He ran for Governor of Jigawa State in the 1999 elections but was defeated by the All People's Party (APP) candidate Ibrahim Saminu Turaki. President Olusegun Obasanjo appointed Lamido Foreign Minister in June 1999, causing friction with Lamido's patron Abubakar Rimi, who had been turned down as Obasanjo’s Vice-Presidential partner.

In December 2003, Lamido and Abubakar Rimi disagreed over the choice of chairman of a committee to investigate the zonal chairman of the party, leading to tensions. In October 2006, Lamido described Rimi as 'a contradiction of his political past.' However, in December 2007, he later described Rimi as a major factor in Nigerian politics. In January 2001, Nigeria turned over the Chairmanship of the Group of 77 to Iran. Lamido’s speech at the hand-over ceremony was praised for highlighting progress under Nigeria’s leadership.

After a September 2001 meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Lamido described Britain’s concerns over Africa’s peace, progress, and prosperity as 'fantastic.' In the same month, he inaugurated a committee to organize an international conference on human trafficking, child abuse, child labor, and slavery, noting the dangers faced by trafficked Nigerians attempting to cross the Sahara and Mediterranean.

Speaking at the United Nations in November 2001, Lamido condemned corruption’s corrosive impact on new democracies like Nigeria and called for an international instrument against the transfer of looted funds abroad. In January 2003, a House of Representatives committee visited Pakistan, seeking mediation in the Kashmir dispute without consulting the Foreign Ministry. Lamido wrote to the committee’s chairman, Sadiq Yar’Adua, pointing out the risks of such an action without proper background.

In March 2003, Lamido criticized Governor Turaki for alleged mismanagement of federal funds. In May 2003, after the PDP lost the Jigawa elections again, Lamido accused the All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP) of rigging the polls. In August 2006, the North West zone of the PDP rejected Lamido as a candidate for the 2007 governorship election. However, he contested and won the election with support from Saminu Turaki, who later defected to the PDP.

After the election, Turaki faced allegations of financial mismanagement and initially struggled to secure bail. Lamido denied intimidation claims. In June 2007, he criticized new generation banks for aiding governors in looting state treasuries and called for tighter regulations. In July 2007, he announced plans to spend ₦2 billion on education, rebuilding schools and training teachers in Jigawa State.

In September 2009, Lamido offered free land and basic infrastructure to investors in tourism and hospitality in Jigawa. In December 2009, he introduced a plan to provide monthly stipends to beggars to keep them off the streets. It was later reported that Olusegun Obasanjo was lobbying for Lamido to be the PDP’s vice presidential candidate for the 2011 elections. Lamido won reelection on 26 April 2011, securing 676,307 votes against Badaru Abubakar’s 343,177 votes.

In 2015, Lamido and his two sons were briefly jailed after being arrested and tried for allegedly arranging contracts for companies they controlled. Lamido blamed his enemies for the arrest. In October 2017, Lamido declared interest in running for president in the 2019 election. In February 2018, he formally declared his candidacy at a rally in Birni Kudu, Jigawa State, declaring his intention to become Nigerian president in 2019.

In June 2018, Lamido supporters organized a prayer session for his presidential campaign, which was disrupted by the police for security reasons. The prayer was organized by Jigawa State students on scholarships awarded by Lamido during his governorship. Lamido was one of the 12 candidates running for the PDP presidential nomination in November 2018. Other contenders included Atiku Abubakar, Ibrahim Dankwabo, and several others.

In the PDP presidential primary on 6 October 2018, Lamido secured 96 votes, placing sixth behind winner Atiku Abubakar, who received 1,532 votes. The North East region’s delegate votes were split among candidates from the region, posing a challenge for Lamido.