The Catholic Diocese of Abakakili in Ebonyi State has dismissed report of a priest who wedded his lover in the State.
A news report had made the rounds of a Catholic priest in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State Capital recently wedded his lover in the State.
The report which went viral on social media narrated how a Catholic priest, Jude Obasi, allegedly got married to his lover on 25 May in Abakakili.
According to the report, the wedding took place at Saint Mary’s Catholic Church, Abakakili.
It stated that priest hails from Afikpo North Local Government Area.
The priest and his lover were pictured holding hands during a procession of the wedding prograamme.
But reacting in a statement on Monday, the Diocesan Chancellor, of Catholic Church, Abakaliki, Reverend Father Matthew Opoke, dismissed the report.
According to Opoke, “No priest goes by such name within the Diocese. “That person in the trending photograph “does not resemble the face of any priest” in the Diocese.
The Chancellor stated that there is no priest with such name either in the Diocese or from Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
Opoke further added that the Diocese does not have any place called Saint Mary’s Catholic Church, Abakakili. He pointed that no such event took place in the area within the said time reported in social media.
He therefore, stated that, “It goes without saying that the publication…is fake.”
“It was possibly fermented by a blogger who wants to gain much traffic on their social media handles,” he added.
To support what the Chancillor said, some residents of Afikpo North Local Government Area who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES denied that such event took.
According to PREMIUM TIMES, the interviewees maintained that no priest and Church have names mentioned in the report.
“Nothing like that happened around here,” one of the residents, who asked not to be named, said.
However, an independent investigation by PREMIUM TIMES found that the report was false and a case of misinformation.
“The photograph which accompanied the report first appeared on news blog in October 2023.
“The photograph is that of a Kenyan Catholic priest, Edwin Gathang’i Waiguru. He had gotten married to his long-term friend, Margaret Wanjira Githui,” PREMIUM TIMES stated.
According to Kenyan media, Waiguru had defected to a Roman Catholic splinter group known as the Catholic Charismatic Church.
source: Premium Times
Follow us on our WhatsApp News Channels @
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaC505jB4hdZ5Yx9g82U
