Bishop Chukwuma blasts Nwobodo for dumping Anglican Church; laments role of Bishop Onaga in the saga

Archbishop of the Ecclesiastical Province of Enugu (Anglican Communion), Most Rev. Emmanuel Chukwuma, at the weekend, insisted that Senator Jim Nwobodo’s exit from the Anglican Church, “is good riddance to bad rubbish”.
The former Governor of old Anambra State, penultimate week dumped the Anglican Church for the Catholic Chuch, saying he had found spiritual satisfaction and fair treatment which the former did not offer him, especially under the leadership of Archbishop Chukwuma.
However, Archbishop Chukwuma, informed The AUTHORITY on Sunday that Nwobodo was not useful to the Anglican Church as a member, adding that it was shameful that Bishop Callistus Onaga welcomed him (Nwobodo) into the Catholic Church and even conducted his wedding.
His words: “I said it is a good riddance to bad rubbish. Nwobodo is of no use to us in the Anglican Church. He has not contributed anything for the church. We have lost so much money in his Savannah Bank, and has he refunded us?
“He should be ashamed of himself at this age and too, it is also a shame to the Catholic Church to have accepted him by now.
“I feel disappointed in Bishop Onaga to have accepted Nwobodo without asking me questions or seeking my opinion or wanting to know what had happened.
“Let him (Onaga) tell us why he sneaked him (Nwobodo) into the Bishop’s Court Chapel to wed him. Why didn’t he conduct the wedding in the open?
He thought he has gained somebody, but he has gained rubbish.
“His son wanted to wed and I told him if the mother of that child was not there at the wedding, that I will not wed them.
I can’t tolerate that type of nonsense. So, as far as I am concerned, I am not a compromising bishop.
“The Catholic Church should repent and ask for forgiveness by accepting the ‘useless person’ who they would have reconciled with his family.
“Bishop Onaga himself should be cautioned because he caused confusion for Ndigbo for which there was problem between former Governors Sullivan Chime and Okwesilieze Nwodo. If he was able to settle the problem, Nwodo wouldn’t have lost the chairmanship of PDP.
“He could not control Sullivan because he compromised, even when he wedded Sullivan and Clara. Where is Clara today? Is that not a shame to the Catholic Church?
“Even when he claimed to be a Bishop, Father Mbaka is more important than him. How can the wife of a President come to a Diocese and look for a Reverend Father without seeing his Bishop? It cannot happen in the Anglican Church.
“His annoyance was that the Anglican Church did not support him against his children. His first son, Ifeanyi died, but he did not settle the medical bills in America.
“To bury the boy, he refused that the boy should be buried in his compound, but outside. There was disagreement and I called them to the Church and told him that the boy would be buried in the Church premises since he had refused to bury him in his compound”.
He stated that after the squabbles, Ifeanyi was later buried in his twin brother’s (John Nwobodo) compound.
“Now, tell me, what was our sin in that matter? So, he felt we did not support him against his children, hence his defection to the Roman Catholic Church.
“Nwobodo has always wanted to have his way without sponsoring any Anglican in politics. The only church he said he built in Amechi, his home town, was with the Anambra State money when he was the governor in 1982 and he has not been maintaining that church.
“He was not happy when I nominated his son to be a Knight, he said I would have made him (Nwobodo) the Knight, when he knew he has expired. His first wife is still alive and he said I should make him Grand-Knight. I told him we don’t make Grand-Knight in the Anglican Church. He cannot intimidate me,” he added.
When contacted, Senator Nwobodo maintained studied silence. However, one of his aides who did not want to be named, said the former governor will not want to dignify Archbishop Chukwuma with any response for now, but would prefer to study whatever he had to say and give him appropriate response at the right time.