Teacher, Principal, Permanent Secretary, and School Proprietor
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari was known for her trendy appearances. She was an intelligent school tutor/principal in the early 1970s and retired as a Permanent Secretary in the public service.
Synopsis
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari JP (1939-2018) was from Ogbolomabiri town in Nembe Local Government Area of Bayelsa state. She grew up within the fold of a relatively well-to-do family. Her father was the late Chief Kombo-Igbeta, a foremost educationist from Nembe. She took a cue from her father in education.
Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari turned out to be a dedicated school tutor/principal in the old Rivers State. Afterwards, she meritoriously retired as a Permanent Secretary from the public service of Bayelsa State and established a school (Ala International Montessori School). In her lifetime, Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari was a dedicated Anglican. She died on 4 October 2018 at the age of 79.
Her Parents and Siblings
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari was born into a family of affluence, and her father was the late S.F. Kombo-Igbeta, a renowned educationist from the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. He was a Geography teacher at Methodist College, Uzakoli in the 1940s. As a teacher, he had trained many prominent personalities in Nigeria. He also served as Headmaster, Provincial Educational Officer, and Principal of schools in Nembe, Bonny, Etinam, Uzuakoli, Ile-Ife, Lagos, Uyo, and Owerri.
Subsequently, late S.F. Kombo-Igbeta served as a pioneer commissioner in the executive council of Lieutenant Commander Diete Spiff, the first Military Governor of old Rivers State.
Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari’s mother, the late Mrs. Eugenia T.M. Kombo-Igbeta, was also an educated woman.
She was the first child of her parents, and all of her siblings are erudite scholars who have left footprints on the sands of time.
When and Where Was She Born?
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari was born on November 4, 1939, in Uzuakoli community of Aba province in the then Eastern Region of Nigeria.
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari’s Husband and Children
She married Mr. Hans Suku-Abrakasa (Sir [Chief] Engr. Hans Suku-Ogbari) at All Saints Anglican Church, Yaba, Lagos, on December 28, 1968. The couple went on to have five children together.
Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari had a wonderful marriage life. She and Sir (Chief) Engr. Hans Suku-Ogbari regularly celebrated their wedding anniversary. They had already planned to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on December 28, 2018, but her death on October 4, 2018, interrupted the planned celebration.
Education
Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari attended several elementary schools in the late 1950s due to her father’s role as a notable school teacher and principal at various towns over different periods.
Between 1955 and 1961, she was at Cornelia Connelly College (Girls) Uyo, Eastern Nigeria (now Akwa Ibom state), where she earned her West African School Certificate. In 1962, at the same Cornelia Connelly College, she earned her Higher School Certificate.
Subsequently, between 1963 and 1966, she studied at the prestigious University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in History.
Afterwards, she earned a Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) at the University of Ibadan from 1972 to 1973.
Career
Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari had a brilliant working career as a teacher, principal, and administrator. She began her career as a primary school teacher at Ibeku Central School, Umuahia, in the then Eastern Nigeria just after completing her secondary education in 1960. Subsequently, she was transferred briefly to tutor at Anglican Grammar School, Umuahia, for four months.
She also worked with the British Bank of West Africa (BBWA) as a Clerk from February to September 1963.
She taught at Egbu Girls’ Secondary School, Owerri, Enugu State, from July 1966 to June 1967 and was promoted to Principal in July 1967. Afterward, she resigned as principal at Egbu Girls’ Secondary School and took another teaching job at City College, Lagos, between March 1968 and December 1970.
As A Principal
Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari was a teacher at Government Comprehensive Secondary School, Borokiri-Port Harcourt, from 1971 to 1973. Between 1973 and 1979, she was Principal at Government Girls’ Secondary School, Harbor Road, Port Harcourt. She was also Principal at Archbishop Crowder Memorial Girls’ School, Elelenwo, Port Harcourt, from 1979 to 1981.
As An Administrator
Between 1981 and 1983, she was promoted from the rank of principal to Deputy Chief Inspector of Education (Primary Teacher Education) at the Rivers State School Board.
Later, she was promoted to Chief Inspector of Education from 1983 to 1987. Between 1988 and 1996, she became a substantive Director of Education (Secondary and Adult and Non-formal Education) in Rivers State. From 1996 to 1998, she served as Director at the Agency for Adult and Non-formal Education in Rivers State.
As Permanent Secretary
Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari attained the apex of her career when she was promoted to Permanent Secretary in the Bayelsa State public service in March 1998. She administered the following ministries as Permanent Secretary: Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Lands and Housing, and Ministry of Education, retiring meritoriously from the public service on June 30, 2001. She was an administrator par excellence.
Ala Montessori
In 1998, she founded a renowned and classic school, Ala International Montessori Infant, Junior, and High School, at Ekeki-Epie, Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.
Her Major Achievements
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari’s achievements are notable in the educational sector and beyond. She tutored and inspired many great minds from the Niger Delta and beyond, who are impacting society today.
Ala International Montessori is a success story. The well-equipped school, which had only nine pupils in 1998, now has over five hundred students, with vibrant, qualified teachers making a living from the establishment.
Her Faith
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari was born into an Anglican family. She worshiped at St. Andrew’s Anglican Church (Nembe section), Diobu, Port Harcourt, and later at Cyprian Church, Hospital Road, Port Harcourt. The Bishop of Niger Delta West knighted her as a Dame in 2006.
When Did She Die?
Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari died ten days after returning from her usual annual vacation in the United States of America, on October 4, 2018, in Port Harcourt, Rivers state.
She was interred on November 10, 2018, by the Anglican Church at Nembe. She was aged 79.