By Ebun Babalola
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Anthony Cardinal Olubunmi Okogie was born on June 16, 1936 to a royal family of f Uromi in Edo State. His father was Esan and his mother, Mrs. Lucia Adunni Okogie was from Oyo State.

He was ordained  a priest on December 11, 1966. In 1971, he was ordained titular Bishop of Mascula and Auxiliary of Oyo, and in 1973 named Archbishop. He was proclaimed Cardinal by Pope John Paul II in the consistory of 21 October 2003, and holds the title of Cardinal Priest of Santa Maria del Monte Carmelo a Mostacciano(or in English Blessed Virgin Mary of Mt. Carmel of Mostacciano).

The 75 year old cardinal is our icon on this edition of Saturday Past Perfect as we celebrate his fearless, unfailing and uprightness in the Christendom. Anthony Cardinal Olubunmi Okogie is best known for his unyielding crusade for good governance, human rights, equity and social justice.

There is no rose without a thorn. I started just like every other person. My life in the seminary, in the Nigerian Army and as a Priest in the Catholic Church was designed by God himself.

What I know was that after my form three , I told my daddy that I was going to be a priest. He wanted me to be a Doctor or an Engineer. He said, that would make him a fulfilled man on earth. Both I told him that I wasn’t going to become any of those two professions he suggested. He persisted but I insisted. That was my first challenge in life. I know God was going to use me for His work on earth but how to go about it was what I didn’t know. I hoped and continued to pray on it.

Cardinal Okogie

My father wanted to see his children’s children and I wasn’t ready for that. So, both of us were in a bottle-neck with each other. In the same view, my sister also became a Reverend Sister.

My mother was happy. She wanted to see her children doing the work of God. So, she supported me and I proceeded to the seminary. At that time, I never knew what I was going into. I just wanted to be a priest.

At the seminary, I encountered challenges that almost pulled me back but I persisted and hoped in God. Many people who came to the school withdrew because they couldn’t endure it. But, I thank God that, I am alive today and doing the work of God.

I was ordained a priest on December 11, 1966. After a while, I planned to go and  study in Rome but  unfortunately, I was called to Nigeria where I was a pastoral assistant at the Holy Cross Cathedral.

Then, the story became sour when I was invited by one man to join the Nigerian Army. I told my boss, Archbishop Algae and he supported that I should proceed. I didn’t know that I was going to the war front. My mission was to manage the soldiers and counsel them.

At that point, my mother who supported my decision to go to the seminary started crying that she didn’t want to lose me, that I was going to die in the Army. She cried for months thinking I was going to die . All efforts to convince her proved abortive but there was no going back. I’d already made the decision to go to the Army. I believe God wanted to use me for His divine work.

It will interest you to know that I became bold and fearless. I didn’t know what gave me the boldness. I just saw that I was there doing my work. In fact, some of the soldiers thought I had other powers I was using. I don’t have any other power than God’s. He is my strength and I believe in Him. I became a king in the Army.

Other challenges also came up, like how  to redefine the role and relevance of the clergy in the quest for an egalitarian society;  the need to stand against the suffering of the masses; to lash out at harsh governmental policies and to speak out against injustices of any kind.

As a former Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, under the regime of the former Military President, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, I was a torn in the fresh of the government, check-mating their excesses and ensuring that  Nigerians had a say on issues relating to their collective well-being. Even under the maximum ruler, late Sani Abacha, I rose to the demands of the moment, refusing to be silenced or intimidated by the gun-trotting khaki men.

I also remember that during my reign as President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN,  I stood out like a colossus to ensure that the interest of the Church and indeed all Christians in Nigeria was protected.

In the area of educational development,  fighting against the retrogressive government move of taking-over all a missionary schools after the civil war was another major cause for me. I didn’t know how to play politics when it comes to human beings and that was another major challenge for me.

So, it became expedient to come with a better approach that would better relate my messages to people especially Nigerians. So, I started granting numerous press interviews, publishing write-ups and holding meetings to get government to understand the injustices behind its action and its attendant negative effect on the nation’s educational sector.

I was able to raise a heightened and renewed social consciousness that brought together the collective effort of all stakeholders in the educational sector who stood up for justice. Today, most of the missionary schools have been returned and they are performing excellently well.

I didn’t work only in the Christendom, I also volunteered to die in place of a Muslim woman who had been condemned to death by stoning by an Islamic court for adultery.

In my youthful years, I would say that things were by far better than what obtains today. There was respect for elders. The education we had was quite different. We had teachers who taught us with love. Although, we were tele-guided, but it was to build us up.

Teachers were regarded as second parents. Although, there was no undue familiarity, they tried to treat their pupils as their own children. They made the children trust in them. But all that is gone now.  And they did not work simply to receive salaries, but felt they had a role to play in moulding the children in their care and the rest of society.

My advice to the youth is to be steadfast and  to fear God in all they do.