Chris Nwabueze Ngige (born 8 August 1952) is a Nigerian politician and medical doctor. He is the current Minister of Labour and Employment of Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari's administration. He was elected Senator for Anambra Central Constituency in April 2011. He was the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Anambra State 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 State ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

from May 2003 to March 2006 under the

People's Democratic Party People's Democratic Party or ''variant thereof'', could refer to: * People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan *People's Democratic Party (Belize) *People's Democratic Party (Bhutan) *People's Democratic Party (Chile) * People's Democratic Party (Dom ...

(PDP).

Background

medical Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practic ...

doctor by profession, Ngige graduated from the University of Nigeria-Nsukka in 1979. Chris immediately went into the civil service, serving at the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

and state house clinics at different times. He retired in 1998 as a deputy director in the Federal Ministry of

Health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

Political career

Dr. Chris Nwabueze Ngige joined politics, becoming a member of the

(PDP). In 1999, he was Assistant National Secretary and Zonal Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the South East region of Nigeria. In 2003, he was elected governor of

in controversial circumstances. He quickly broke ranks with his political godfather, Chris Uba the brother of Andy Uba, after an unsuccessful attempt on 10 July 2003 to have him removed from office, through a fabricated letter of resignation which the state assembly accepted. In August, 2005, an Election Tribunal led by Justice Nabaruma nullified Ngige's 2003 victory. He appealed to the Nigerian Federal Court of Appeal, but the annulment was confirmed on 15 March 2006, in a judgment awarding victory to

Peter Obi Peter Gregory Obi (born 19 July 1961) is a Nigerian businessman and politician who served as governor of Anambra from March to November 2006, February to May 2007, and from June 2007 to March 2014. In May 2022, he became the Labour Party can ...

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 ...

(APGA). No further appeals were possible, and Ngige accepted the judgment in good faith, calling on the people of Anambra to give their support to his successor. Following Peter Obi's subsequent impeachment, Ngige attempted to participate in state governorship elections in April 2007, but was frustrated by the

Independent National Electoral Commission The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was established in 1998 and is the electoral body which oversees elections in Nigeria. History Regulation and administration of elections The administration of democratic elections in Nige ...

and federal 'disqualification', even after a Federal High Court had voided the disqualification. In the final event, Obi's impeachment was overturned anyway, and Obi served out his four years. At the time, Ngige was also severely criticized for appearing naked at the dreaded Okija voodoo shrine during his campaign to be made governor. On 6 February 2010, Ngige again contested for the governorship of Anambra State. Other notable politicians who contested with him included Andy Uba, Charles Soludo, Nicholas Ukachukwu, Mrs. Uche Ekwunife, Ralph Nwosu, and the incumbent governor, Peter Obi. In all, there were 25 candidates for that election. Peter Obi won that election and started his second term as the governor of Anambra State. In April 2011, Ngige ran for election for senator of Anambra Central, on the

Action Congress of Nigeria The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), formerly known as Action Congress (AC), was a Nigerian political party formed via the merger of a faction of Alliance for Democracy, the Justice Party, the Advance Congress of Democrats, and several othe ...

(ACN) platform. After voting problems in some areas of the constituency on 9 April, the election in these areas was held on 25 April and Ngige was declared the winner over former Minister of Information and Communications Professor

Dora Akunyili Dora Nkem Akunyili (14 July 1954 – 7 June 2014) was the Director-General of National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) of Nigeria from 2001 to 2008. Early life and education Dora Edemobi was born in Makurdi, ...

of the APGA, with 69,765 votes to Akunyili's 69,292. Ngige's tenure as a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria came to an end following his defeat in the 2015 election by Hon. Mrs

Uche Ekwunife Uche Lilian Ekwunife (née Ogudebe born 12 January 1970), is a Nigerian politician, and member of the 9th Nigerian Senate representing the people of Anambra Central Senatorial District of Anambra State and she is known as one of the most active f ...

who has been sworn in as the senator representing Anambra Central Senatorial District in the current 8th National Assembly of Nigeria. On 11 November 2015, Ngige was named minister of Labour and Employment by President

Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician and current president of Nigeria since 2015. Buhari is a retired Nigerian Army major general who served as the country's military head of state from 31 December 1983 to 27 Au ...

. In 2019, Chris Ngige was Nominated by President

as a returning minister for screening by the house of assembly. On 21 August 2019, he was sworn in by the president as the Minister of Labour and Employment On 19 April 2022, Ngige declared interest to run for the post of the President of the Republic of Nigeria under the All Progressive Congress (APC) banner. The experienced politician, who has served as Governor of Anambra State, Senator and Minister described himself as "jack of all trade and masters of all"

References

External links

Official Nuhu Ribadu for President campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ngige, Chris 1952 births Igbo politicians University of Nigeria alumni Living people Governors of Anambra State Buhari administration personnel Peoples Democratic Party state governors of Nigeria Action Congress of Nigeria politicians Members of the Senate (Nigeria) All Progressives Congress politicians Federal ministers of Nigeria 20th-century Nigerian medical doctors 21st-century Nigerian medical doctors

Background

Political career

See also

References

External links