Bianca Odinakachukwu Olivia Odumegwu-Ojukwu (, born 5 August 1968) is a Nigerian politician, diplomat, lawyer, and businesswoman. She is the
widow
A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died.
Terminology
The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word ...
of former
Biafra
Biafra, officially the Republic of Biafra, was a partially recognised secessionist state in West Africa that declared independence from Nigeria and existed from 1967 until 1970. Its territory consisted of the predominantly Igbo-populated form ...
president
Chukuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu.
Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu is a multiple international pageant titleholder, having won
Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria
Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria – often abbreviated as MBGN – is a pageant organised by Silverbird Group with the main purpose of sending representatives to international competitions. Originally known as Miss Universe Nigeria, it was rena ...
1988 and Miss Africa, and is best known as the first African to win Miss Intercontinental. Formerly a presidential advisor,
[Beauty Queen Bianca Ojukwu Appointed Senior Special Assistant on Diaspora Affairs](_blank)
she was the country's ambassador to Ghana and became Nigeria's Ambassador to
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
in 2012.
Biography
Early life and education
The sixth child of former
Anambra
Anambra State is a Nigerian state, located in the southeastern region of the country. The state was created on August 27, 1991. Anambra state is bounded by Delta State to the west, Imo State to the south, Enugu State to the east and Kogi Stat ...
governor
Christian Onoh
Christian Chukuwuma Onoh, popularly known as CC Onoh, (27 April 1927 – 5 May 2009) was a Nigerian businessman and lawyer who became governor of Anambra State in 1983 at the end of the Nigerian Second Republic. He was also the father-in-law ...
and his wife Carol, a college principal, Odumegwu-Ojukwu spent most of her childhood in rural
Ngwo
Ngwo is a town located in the south-eastern state of Enugu, Nigeria, with a population of about 100,000 people. The towns native population are of Igbo ethnicity.
History
Ngwo people descended from the man called Ngwu-Ako who lived at a place n ...
with her siblings Lilian, Josephine, Nuzo, Gabriel, Stella, Christian and Josef. She attended
Ackworth School
Ackworth School is an independent day and boarding school located in the village of High Ackworth, near Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England. It is one of seven Quaker schools in England. The school (or more accurately its Head) is a member ...
,
Pontefract
Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wake ...
,
St Andrews College, Cambridge, and Cambridge Tutorial College where she obtained her A-levels. She soon began a combined honours degree in Politics, Economics and Law at the
University of Buckingham
, mottoeng = Flying on Our Own Wings
, established = 1973; as university college1983; as university
, type = Private
, endowment =
, administrative_staff = 97 academic, 103 support
, chance ...
, but transferred to the
University of Nigeria, Nsukka
The University of Nigeria, commonly referred to as UNN, is a federal university located in Nsukka, Enugu State, Eastern part of Nigeria. Founded by Nnamdi Azikiwe in 1955 and formally opened on 7 October 1960, the University of Nigeria has thr ...
after her father, a lawyer by profession, insisted she concentrated solely on Law and join the family business. Following graduation, Odumegwu-Ojukwu attended the
Nigerian Law School
The Nigerian Law School is an educational institution set up by the Government of Nigeria in 1962 to provide a Nigerian legal education to foreign-trained lawyers, and to provide practical training for aspiring Legal Practitioners in Nigeria. ...
which eventually led to her
call to the bar
The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...
.
[My Life With Ojukwu](_blank)
Early career
After Law School, Odumegwu-Ojukwu briefly practised the profession before quitting to divide her time between her home, her cosmetics business Bianca Blend and her
interior decorating
Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. An interior designer is someone who plans, researches, coordin ...
outfit ''Mirabella''.
Despite her reservations regarding modelling, Odumegwu-Ojukwu fronted print commercials for her brand. She also established the non-government organisation Hope House Trust, centred towards rehabilitating juvenile offenders in Enugu.
Pageantry
In December 1988, Odumegwu-Ojukwu, who had previously emerged winner at
Miss Martini, was crowned
Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria
Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria – often abbreviated as MBGN – is a pageant organised by Silverbird Group with the main purpose of sending representatives to international competitions. Originally known as Miss Universe Nigeria, it was rena ...
, but reigned through most of 1989. She also won the Miss Africa 1989 pageant held in
Gambia
The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...
before representing her country at both
Miss World
Miss World is the oldest existing international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951. Since his death in 2000, Morley's widow, Julia Morley, has co-chaired the pageant. Along with Miss Universe, Miss Int ...
in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
and
Miss Universe
Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stre ...
in
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
. She achieved greater success when she won Miss Intercontinental that same year, and was named Miss Congeniality at the now defunct Miss Charm International in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
where she was also a semi-finalist.
Diplomacy
In 2011, Odumegwu-Ojukwu was appointed Senior Special Assistant on Diaspora Affairs by President
Goodluck Jonathan
Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957)Lawson Heyford, ''The Source'' (Lagos), 11 December 2006. is a Nigerian politician who served as the President of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to fo ...
;
in 2012 she became Nigeria's Ambassador to Ghana
and later Ambassador to the Kingdom Of Spain. In 2016, Odumegwu-Ojukwu received a master's degree in International Relations and Diplomacy from
Alfonso X el Sabio University
Alfonso X el Sabio University (''Universidad Alfonso X El Sabio'' in Spanish language, ''UAX'') is a private university in the Community of Madrid, Spain.
The number of enrolled students amounts to 8,500 The UAX offers its students the option of ...
in Spain. She is now Nigeria's permanent representative to the
United Nations World Tourism Organization
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations specialized agency entrusted with the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. Its headquarters are in Madrid, Spain. UNWTO is the leading internati ...
.
Controversy
In 1989, halfway through her reign as MBGN, the press revealed Odumegwu-Ojukwu's secret relationship with the former
Biafra
Biafra, officially the Republic of Biafra, was a partially recognised secessionist state in West Africa that declared independence from Nigeria and existed from 1967 until 1970. Its territory consisted of the predominantly Igbo-populated form ...
n Head Of State
Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu
Chukwuemeka "Emeka" Odumegwu Ojukwu (4 November 1933 – 26 November 2011) was a Nigerian military officer, statesman and politician who served as the military governor of the Eastern Region of Nigeria in 1966 and the president of the se ...
, a political associate of her father's, over thirty years her senior.
[CC Onoh and Bianca](_blank)
Their controversial romance was a national talking point in the early 1990s. The immense pressure of being under the public eye became increasingly unbearable, causing her to resign as Miss Intercontinental as her main concern was completing her education as a law student. In 1994, having finally obtained her degree, she married the former Biafran president in a lavish wedding ceremony held in
Abuja
Abuja () is the capital and eighth most populous city of Nigeria. Situated at the centre of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), it is a planned city built mainly in the 1980s based on a master plan by International Plann ...
.
In 2012, following the death of her husband, his will, which left most of his assets to her, generated a great deal of controversy and disaffection among several family members. Odumegwu-Ojukwu appealed to her critics to allow ''Ikemba'' Odumegwu-Ojukwu to "rest in peace", describing him as a man of honour and integrity whose legacy should not be obscured by rancour over inheritance issues and stating that the will was drafted in 2005, registered and placed in the custody of the State Probate Registry with the legal witnesses and executors, who were present at the time it was prepared, still living.
On 17 March 2022, during the inaugural ceremony of governor
Chukwuma Soludo
Charles Chukwuma Soludo (; born 28 July 1960) is a Nigerian politician, banker, and economics professor who has served as governor of Anambra State since March 2022. He is a former governor and chairman of the board of directors of the Centra ...
, Odumegwu-Ojukwu delivered what has now been widely dubbed a ‘valedictory slap’ to a visibly inebriated Ebelechukwu Obiano, the outgoing first lady of Anambra State, who had physically attacked her at the state function.
Personal life
Odumegwu-Ojukwu was married to ''Ikemba'' Odumegwu-Ojukwu until his death in 2011; the couple had three children together. Of her marriage, she admits that while she was happy to have found her husband, she would not encourage her daughter to make a similar choice of marital engagement. Odumegwu-Ojukwu holds many traditional titles in her native land as well as the highest chieftaincy title conferred on women in her region.
Awards
Odumegwu-Ojukwu was honoured with the Certificate of Merit by El Mundo Diplomatico for her efforts towards providing effective platforms for constructive engagement between Nigeria and Spain, and was voted Africa's Outstanding Ambassador by
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
magazine ''The Voice'' in 2014. She was also honored with the "Ambassador of Excellence" Award by the Government of Anambra State, Nigeria at its Silver Jubilee commemoration in 2016. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of the
All Progressives Grand Alliance
The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) is a political party in Nigeria.
Electoral history
At the legislative elections held on 12 April 2003, the party won 1.4% of popular votes and 2 of 360 seats in the House of Representatives of Nigeri ...
, the Political Party that was founded by her late husband Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu and which has maintained political power in Anambra State for over a decade. Her bid to represent her senatorial district in 2018 was stalled as a result of irregularities which occurred during her party's primary elections.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Bianca
1968 births
Living people
People from Enugu State
Ambassadors of Nigeria to Spain
High Commissioners of Nigeria to Ghana
Nigerian women ambassadors
Nigerian women diplomats
Igbo beauty pageant contestants
Nigerian beauty pageant winners
Miss Universe 1989 contestants
Miss World 1989 delegates
Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria winners
Nigerian women lawyers
University of Nigeria alumni
Alfonso X El Sabio University alumni
Nigerian diplomats