It is no longer news that Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra state, on Wednesday, January 15, 2020, became the first Catholic faithful in the South East to be bestowed with the honour of Knight Commander of the Pontifical Order of Saint   Gregory the Great (KCSG). What is news, however, is that Papal Sir Willie now occupies a rare position among the Catholic Laity, having been conferred earlier with the title of Duke of the Catholic Laity of Nigeria.

Papal Knighthood is a highly revered honour in the Catholic Church. A practice that dates back to the middle ages, the Papal Knighthood is usually conferred on an individual in acknowledgment of his service to the Church. 

The Order of Saint Gregory the Great is one of the five Orders of Knighthood of the Holy See bestowed upon Roman Catholic faithful in recognition of their personal service to the Church through outstanding efforts and personal examples they have set in their communities and countries.

The ceremony was performed by the Supreme Pontiff and leader of the Worldwide Catholic Church, Pope Francis. No doubt, Governor Willie Obiano and his wife, Osodieme, have been pillars of the church right from their years in the private sector. Long before he was elected governor, Sir Willie 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.

Sir Willie was patron of many Catholic Groups, including Saint Anthony of Padua; Catholic Artistes and Entertainers Association of Nigeria; Catholic Women Association, Aguleri; Priests and Rev. Sisters of Aguleri Origin and Missionary of Saint Paul’s Society. Others are CWO of Our Lady Queen of Peace, Ifako, Gbagada; National Youth Council of Nigeria, Anambra East Chapter and Catholic Laity Council of Nigeria, Onitsha Archdiocese.

Sir Willie and his Wife single handedly financed the fencing of school compound of Father Tansi Memorial Secondary School, Aguleri. He is the Grand Pillar of Saint Gerald’s Catholic Church, Gbagada, Lagos. This was in recognition of massive financial help by him and his friends in building the Father’s house and now the Church building under construction.

Chief Obiano and his family do support, yearly, the Saint Anthony’s Catholic Church in Houston Texas USA. He is a Philanthropist and has, for years, donated bags of rice to widows of Saint Joseph’s Catholic Church, Aguleri. He is also supporting the Youths Village being constructed by Archbishop Valerian Okeke in Awka. Obiano has generously donated funds in support of Catholic Church harvests, both in Onitasha and Lagos.

Papal Sir Willie Obiano used his influence as Executive Director in Fidelity Bank then to ensure Support for Bishops Conference and Catholic Church activities in Lagos Archdiocese and Nigeria in general. 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 in Aguleri. It was in recognition of his relentless support to the church that the Catholic Laity Council of Nigeria awarded him the title of The Duke and his wife, Osodieme, as the Duchess of the Catholic Church early last year.

In response to the giant strides of the Obiano administration, several professional associations and corporate bodies have conferred many awards on the governor. The Houston-based USA Africa magazine named him Governor of the Year 2014. The Association of Primary School Head Teachers of Nigeria (AOPSHON) named him the Best Primary Education Friendly Governor of the Year, 2015.

Obiano is a winner of The Sun Newspapers Governor of the Year 2015 as well as winner of the Zik Prize for Good Governance, 2015. The year 2016 also ended with him emerging the Silverbird Man of the Year, Vanguard Newspapers Governor of the Year and The New Telegraph’s Outstanding Performance Award among many others.

Sir Willie also won the Leadership Newspapers Man of the Year, 2016. It would however seem that Chief Obiano’s most cherished award is the President’s Volunteer Service Award bestowed on him in December 2013 by the then President Barrack Obama of the United States of America.

This award came months before Obiano was sworn-in as the Governor of Anambra State and therefore serves as a motivator that galvanised him to offer his best to Ndi Anambra. In the letter informing him of the honour, Obama said, “thank you for helping to address the most pressing needs in your community”. It is telling that ever since he took the oath of office, Obiano has devoted his time to address the most pressing needs of Ndi Anambra. Other world leaders who have been honoured with the title of Knight of Saint Gregory the Great are Sir Alexander Mathew Busby, who managed Manchester United from 1945 to 1969; General Sir Peter John, a retired senior Australian Army officer, who was also the 26th Governor-General of Australia and Peter Paul McSwiney, Lord Mayor of Dublin among others.

No doubt, Governor Willie Obiano has piloted the affairs of Anambra state with the fear of God. We therefore pray that the honour will spur him to do more for Ndi Anambra and humanity. Congratulations, Sir Willie!

No related posts.