Bishop Emeritus of Nsukka Diocese, Most Rev. Francis Okobo, Passes On at 89

• Most Rev. Dr. Francis Emmanuel Ogbonna Okobo, Bishop Emeritus of the Nsukka Catholic Diocese, has died at the age of 89.

• Ordained a priest in 1966 and appointed the first Bishop of Nsukka in 1990, he led the diocese until his retirement in 2013.

• Tributes are pouring in for his decades of service and pioneering role in establishing the diocese.

The Catholic community in Nsukka has been thrown into mourning following the passing of the Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese, Most Rev. Dr. Francis Emmanuel Ogbonna Okobo. He was 89.

According to reports, the retired bishop died in the early hours of Friday after a brief illness. While the Diocese of Nsukka has yet to release an official statement, several priests from the diocese confirmed his death.

Born on November 4, 1936, Okobo was ordained a Catholic priest on June 4, 1966. Decades later, he was appointed the first Bishop of the newly created Diocese of Nsukka on November 19, 1990, and ordained on January 6, 1991. He led the diocese until his retirement on April 13, 2013, upon attaining the statutory retirement age of 80.

Tributes have continued to pour in from clergy, parishioners, and lay faithful, remembering Bishop Okobo for his pioneering role in establishing and nurturing the Nsukka Diocese, as well as his decades of service to the Church.