Fr Obiekezie’s Five Year Service Leaves Lasting Impact in Okpoko
By Okafor Benjamin
ONITSHA: Rev. Fr. Joshua Obiekezie MSSCC, popularly known as “Oberenwa Jesu,” has been commended for his impactful pastoral service and humanitarian interventions during his five year assignment at St. Charles Lwanga Parish, Okpoko, Onitsha.
Fr. Obiekezie, a member of the Congregation of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, was ordained a Catholic priest on July 8, 2021, by Bishop Michael Ukpong, then Auxiliary Bishop of Umuahia and now Bishop of Umuahia Diocese.
He commenced his pastoral assignment at St. Charles Lwanga Parish on August 20, 2021, serving as Assistant Parish Priest, Principal of St. Charles Lwanga Secondary School, Priest in charge of Sacraments, coordinator of Thursday Parish Adoration and chaplain to various Church groups.
His years in Okpoko were marked by initiatives focused on family welfare, education, healthcare and support for vulnerable members of the community.
One of his major initiatives was the annual Free Mass Wedding, organised between 2022 and 2025, which provided couples who faced financial difficulties with the opportunity to receive the Sacrament of Matrimony.
Fr. Obiekezie also regularly visited hospitals and orphanages and supported annual palliative programmes for parishioners and other members of the community, with donations from Orange Drugs.
In education, he provided scholarships to students and parishioners who faced difficulties paying their school fees, while also helping to attract external interventions to the parish and school.
A notable intervention came from Chief Evans Emesim Okwumereze, founder of the Okwumereze Empowerment Foundation, which provided scholarships for 35 students from Okpoko, covering their education from first year to final year, alongside monthly allowances.
His contribution to Church activities was also recognised during the last Chrism Mass at Iyiowa Region, where Archbishop Valerian Okeke appreciated him for making his sound system, Adoration singers and instrumentalists available for Church programmes at no cost.
Through these interventions, Fr. Obiekezie’s ministry in Okpoko extended beyond his traditional priestly responsibilities to practical support for families, students, the sick, orphans and other vulnerable members of the community.
As his assignment in the community comes to an end, his supporters and beneficiaries say his legacy will be measured not only by his official responsibilities, but by the lives impacted during his five years of service.
