User:Whosmeks/Chika Ibeneme

Chief (Mrs) Chika Ibeneme (Born September 30, 1957) is a Nigerian Politician and the current National Leader of the Mega Party. She is also a founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). She was appointed Hon. Commissioner of Works, Housing and Transport (1992-1993) during the tenure of then Governor of Anambra State Chukwuemeka Ezeife. Her political career spans 33 years.

Born in Enugu, the old Anambra State, Chika Ibeneme attended Queen of the Convent Primary School Onitsha and after graduation attended Queen of the Rosary College, Onitsha. After graduating from college, she attended the Women Training College (WTC) Enugu where she studied Teacher Training, She went ahead to study Fine and Applied Arts at the Institute of Management Technology, Enugu (IMT), after which she studied law at the Anambra State University of Science and Technology, Now Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

Personal life
She is married to Nze Dozie Steve Ibeneme (Eze Omeifeukwu of Aguluzigbo) and has five children. She was a school teacher at Christ the King College, Onitsha before she became an active politician. She holds the Chieftaincy title Ugomba in Ejeme Unor, Aniocha South Local Government of Delta State and the Ugosimba of Aguluzigbo.

Politics
Chief (Mrs) Chika Ibeneme joined politics with the Nigerian Peoples Party (NPP) where she served as Women Leader at the Uzouwani ward. She moved on to join the Social Democratic Party of Nigeria (SDP) with the return of democratic government in 1991 and was later appointed as the Honorable Commissioner for Works, Housing and Transport In Anambra State from 1992 to 1993, she also worked as Chairman of all Works’ Commissioners in Nigeria during this period. She later joined the United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP), after it was selected by the then government of Sani Abacha as one of the five state-sanctioned political parties to participate in state assembly elections of December 1997. With the death of Gen. Sani Abacha in 1998, she played a pivotal role in setting up the All Progressives Party (APP) from where she moved on to join the formation of the Peoples Democratic Party in 1998. She was a member of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Campaign team that secured victory for the candidate at the PDP Jos Convention of 1998. In 2000, she was appointed a Member of the Governing Council of the Federal University of Technology, Yola Adamawa State. As a seasoned democrat who is committed to deep democratic ideals, she opposed the 3rd term bid of the incumbent President Olusegun Obasanjo and supported the Solomon Lar led faction of the PDP in June 2006. She retired briefly from partisan politics afterwards and focused more on Community Advocacy and Education Programs where she promoted the use of technology in education. She is also a member of the South-East Nigeria Economic Commission (SENEC)

Community Advocacy and Activism
Chief (Mrs) Chika Ibeneme is a grassroots mobilizer and community leader. She was the Secretary of the defunct pro-democracy group, the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) in Anambra State. At the risk of death, she joined other patriots to oppose military rule and fought for the enthronement of democracy in Nigeria and recognition of the 12 June results. She is the Convener of God's Own Ministry where she engages vulnerable women and young people in programs and initiatives that improves general living conditions of those considered vulnerable in the community. She is also the Founder of Ogbako Umuokpu Igbo (a pan-Igbo Socio-cultural group made up of women who has come of age in Igboland). The group mobilizes support mainly from women groups, civil liberty and faith-based organizations to intercede and confront societal issues, dispute resolutions, and community advocacy among others.