Tonye Briggs-Oniyide is the current
Rivers State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism. She was appointed in 2015 by
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 ...
Ezenwo Nyesom Wike
Ezenwo Nyesom Wike (born 13 December 1967), is a Nigerian politician and lawyer who is the sixth and current Governor of Rivers State. He is an Ikwerre from Rumuepirikom in Obio-Akpor, Rivers State. He is a member of the People's Democratic ...
, replacing Nnabuihe Imegwu.
Early life and education
Briggs was born in
Port Harcourt with family roots in
Akuku-Toru local government area of
Rivers State
Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa ...
. She attended the
University of Port Harcourt
The University of Port Harcourt is located in Choba in Port Harcourt, Rivers state, Nigeria. It was established in 1975 as University College, Port Harcourt and was given university status in 1977. The University of Port Harcourt was rank ...
for her undergraduate studies, earning a bachelor's degree in
Biochemistry
Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...
.
Career
Federal Character Commission
Briggs was appointed member of the
Federal Character Commission 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 ...
on 9 July 2013. She assumed office on 17 August, representing Rivers State.
Culture and Tourism Ministry
On 18 December 2015, she assumed office as Rivers State Culture and Tourism Commissioner, taking over the helm of the ministry from Nnabuihe Imegwu. In April 2016, she facilitated a partnership between the Africa Film Academy and the
Ministry of Culture and Tourism through a landmark agreement which secured Port Harcourt as host city for the
12th Africa Movie Academy Awards.
She has been criticized for not doing enough for the Entertainment industry in Rivers State, with some quarters calling for her resignation. She was suspended by the governor of the state on 31 August 2016.
See also
*
List of people from Rivers State
*
Rivers State Tourism Development Agency
References
Living people
Culture in Rivers State
First Wike Executive Council
University of Port Harcourt alumni
Businesspeople from Port Harcourt
Commissioners of ministries of Rivers State
21st-century Nigerian women politicians
21st-century Nigerian politicians
Tourism ministers
Women government ministers of Nigeria
Year of birth missing (living people)
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