Pope Francis has invested Governor Willie Obiano as a Papal Knight Commander of the Pontifical Order of St. Gregory the Great, for his services to the Catholic Church.


Papal Night is highly revered honour of the Catholic Church, bestowed on people who have made significant contributions to promotion of the Catholic faith and invested in the name of the Pope by his authority as the head of the Holy State and Sovereign of the Vatican City.


Governor Obiano, who was invested with the title in a ceremony at Vatican City of Rome in Italy yesterday, is the first person in South East Nigeria to be so honoured.


Long before he was elected governor of Anambra State, Chief Obiano had established his presence as one of the pillars of the Catholic Church in Nigeria with a string of verifiable activities in service of the church across two Dioceses.


His support for the Catholic Church has not waned since he became governor especially with the recent reconstruction of the over one hundred years old St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Aguleri.


He has also been recognized by the Catholic Laity Council of Nigeria with the Duke and his wife as the Duchess of the Catholic Church early last year.


Outside the Catholic Church, Governor Obiano has been recognized by top corporate and non-governmental organizations in Nigeria and outside including by the Houston based “USA-Africa” magazine, who named him Governor of the Year in 2014 and also won Zik Prize for Good Governance, 2015.


He was accompanied to the ceremony by members of his family, three principal officers, and a few friends for the special honour.