Meet Nigeria’s New Sports Minister, John Enoh

The Cross River State-born politician, Senator John Enoh, was on Wednesday appointed as the Minister of Sports Development by President Bola Tinubu.

The PUNCH reports that the Federal Government also separated the Ministry of Sports Development from Youth, unlike what was obtained under previous administrations. A former member of the House of Representatives, Abubakar Momoh, who is from Edo State, is now the head of the new Ministry of Youth.

Some stakeholders in the sports sector on Wednesday have expressed shock over Enoh’s appointment.

However, here are a few things to know about the newly appointed sports minister:

Enoh was born in 1966, in the Agbokim Waterfall community of Cross River State and is married to Rachel Owan-Enoh with children.

Enoh served as a Senator representing the Central Senatorial District of Cross River State in the 8th Assembly of the Senate.

He was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party until May 2017 when he switched to the ruling All Progressives Congress. In 2019, he contested the governorship election in Cross River State under the APC but was unsuccessful.

Enoh holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology from the University of Calabar. He graduated as the top student in 1988 with Second Class Honours, ‘Upper Division.’

He taught at the University of Calabar for seven years from 1991 to 1997.

He entered politics in 1997 during General Sani Abacha’s political transition programme and successfully ran for the Etung State Constituency seat in the Cross River State House of Assembly, where he served as minority leader. He later became chairman of the Committee of Information. He then represented the Obubra/Etung Federal constituency in the National Assembly for 12 years from 2003 to 2015, holding various positions.

In 2015, he was elected to the Senate and served as Chairman of the Committee of Finance. Enoh was also the APC’s candidate for the governorship in 2019.

In addition to his political career, Enoh owns several farms where he engages in arable and livestock production.

In addition to his political endeavours, Enoh is actively involved in philanthropy. He established the JOE (John Owan Enoh) Foundation, which focuses on assisting individuals living with diabetes in Nigeria. Furthermore, he is recognised as a fellow at the Centre for Peace and Conflicts Studies, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.