Bishop Emeritus of Nsukka Catholic Diocese is dead

The Catholic community in Nsukka, Enugu State, is mourning the death of its first bishop, Most Rev. Dr. Francis Emmanuel Ogbonna Okobo, who passed away early Friday morning at the age of 89.

Although the Nsukka Catholic Diocese has not yet released an official statement, several priests from the diocese confirmed that Bishop Okobo died after a brief illness.

Appointed as the founding bishop of the diocese on November 19, 1990, and consecrated on January 6, 1991, Okobo led the church until his retirement on April 13, 2013, upon reaching the statutory retirement age of 80.

Born on November 4, 1936, he was ordained a Catholic priest on June 4, 1966, before being elevated to the episcopacy decades later.

Tributes have begun to flood social media for the late prelate, who is widely remembered for his pioneering role in building and nurturing the Nsukka Diocese.