Former Anambra State Governor, Willie Obiano, has paid tribute to Pope Francis, who passed away on Easter Monday following a stroke.
In a moving statement, Obiano hailed the late pontiff as a spiritual giant who embodied humility and compassion.
As a Knight Commander of the Pontifical Order of St. Gregory the Great, Obiano reflected on his personal encounter with the pope during a visit to the Vatican on January 15, 2020, where he was conferred with the Papal Knighthood.
“It was a revelation,” Obiano said.
“You’d expect a man of such global stature to be distant, but he was so approachable, so real.”
Obiano recalled how he and his family stayed at Domus Sanctae Marthae—Saint Martha’s House—where Pope Francis chose to live in preference to the Apostolic Palace, a testament to the pope’s well-known simplicity.
One of the most memorable moments of the visit, Obiano said, came when his son, Chukwudifu, spontaneously took a selfie with the pope. Rather than reacting with formality, Pope Francis smiled warmly and embraced the moment.
“That’s who he was,” Obiano noted.
“A pontiff who walked the talk, who preached simplicity and lived it.”
The former governor added that Pope Francis gave the family several gifts, including rosaries for his wife and daughter, while personally handing him a treasured skullcap.
“After the investiture, Pope Francis presented the family with personal gifts — rosaries for my wife, Ebelechukwu; daughter, Dr. Gechi; and young Chukwudifu,” he said.
“For me, the Pope removed his white skullcap, the papal zucchetto, and handed it over.
“It was a gesture so rare, so deeply moving, that I encased it in a special glass display on our family altar. Not just to preserve it from dust, but to constantly remind us of the humility and grace of the man who gave it.”
Willie Obiano remembered Pope Francis as “remarkably simple and approachable,” saying their conversations felt as natural “as though we had known each other for years.”
Reflecting on the pontiff’s enduring impact, the former Anambra governor said Pope Francis would be remembered for his warmth, humility, and unwavering commitment to servant leadership and compassion.
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“He embodied integrity, reached out to the marginalised, and championed dialogue and reform—not just in speeches, but through the way he lived and related to everyone,” Obiano said.
“In Pope Francis, we saw the face of Christ. To honour his legacy, we must strive to live by the values he represented.”
Obiano concluded with prayers for the Catholic Church to carry forward the pope’s mission—remaining a voice for the voiceless and a reflection of the gospel’s core principles of love, mercy, and justice.
