Catholic Bishops Name New Visitor, Council Chairman For Veritas Varsity

The Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has appointed new officers to oversee Veritas University, Abuja, following the expiration of the tenure of previous officers.

Under the new appointments, the Archbishop of Kaduna, Most Rev. Matthew Man’oso Ndagoso, who was elected as the new president of the CBCN, becomes the new Visitor of the institution.

Ndagoso replaces Archbishop Lucius Ugorji of the Owerri Archdiocese, who stepped down after serving a four-year tenure as CBCN president.

Similarly, the Bishop of Aba Diocese, Most Rev. Augustine Echema, has been appointed pro-chancellor and chairman of the Council of Veritas University. He takes over from Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto Diocese, who served for a period of four years.

According to a press statement by Ben Agande, head of Corporate Affairs and Communications, the appointees bring to the job a wealth of experience both at the religious and academic levels.

Bishop Matthew Man-Oso Ndagoso, who presently serves as Metropolitan Archbishop of the Kaduna Archdiocese, had earlier served as Bishop of Maiduguri Diocese before he was elevated to the Archbishopric of Kaduna in 2007.

He studied Philosophy and Theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas and was ordained a priest on 4 October 1986.

Bishop Augustine Echema, appointed Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Council of Veritas University by the CBCN, is known not only for his religious fervour but also for his profound expertise in the field of Liturgical Theology.

Born on 28 December 1958, Bishop Echema earned a Doctorate in Theology from the Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule Sankt Georgen in Frankfurt, Germany, after which he joined the Faculty of the Catholic Institute of West Africa (CIWA) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

It was at CIWA that he rose to the rank of Professor of Liturgy. His academic work is widely cited in journals of African Theology.

The Vice-Chancellor of Veritas University, Rev. Fr Prof. Hyacinth Ichoku, thanked the CBCN for the appointments and pledged the management of Veritas University’s unalloyed loyalty and cooperation to ensure that the University attains the vision and mission of its founding fathers.