…Soludo Considers Stopping Fixing Funerals on Work Days, Proposes Saturdays, Hails Bishop Ezeokafor
By Mmaduabuchi Onwumelu
St. Patrick’s Catholic Cathedral, Awka was a beehive of activities on Sunday 10th May 2026, when the Diocese celebrated the 2026 All Knights Day Celebration.
The event, which started with a Concelebrated Eucharistic Mass, attracted the Governor of Anambra State, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, top government officials, Papal Knights, members of St John International, St Mulumba and St Michael the Archangel, among others.
In his opening remarks, the chief Shepherd of Awka Diocese, Bishop Paulinus Ezeokafor, thanked all those present, especially the Governor, for making out time to attend the annual event which he, Bishop Ezeokafor, initiated in 2018 and nurtured to a stage of maturity.
Delivering a homily, the Bishop’s Secretary, Chaplain of the Ancient and Noble Order of Knights of Saint John International (KSJI), and the Coordinator, Awka Diocesan Knights, Rev. Fr. Evaristus Ifeanacho, enjoined all to answer the call of the Holy Spirit and ensure they lived according to the expected and set standards, saying that Knighthood entailed a lot and should be respected.
He charged all to embrace God in truth and in spirit, stating that a Knight should at all times be a true defender of the Church while also working out his salvation.
Addressing the Knights specifically, Reverend Father Ifeanacho emphasized that knighthood was a journey of sober reflections, stock-taking, and reckoning, reminding them that their status was not merely a title but a continuous process of becoming guided by sacred tenets and precepts, while urging them to understand their calling and what they were taught, so they could in turn, teach others.
Rev Father Ifeanacho further cautioned the Knights against what he called spiritual elitism, stressing that knighthood was not a separation from the community, and challenged them to mingle with the people, while always preserving their human face and prophetic voice in defence of the downtrodden.
Speaking shortly before the closing stage of the Mass, Governor Soludo proposed that fixing funerals on midweek should be changed and Saturdays be used for such.
The Governor who joined the faithful of the Catholic Diocese of Awka for the annual Knights’ Day Celebration, marked by a Pontifical Holy Mass presided over by the Catholic Bishop of Awka, Most Reverend Paulinus Ezeokafor, called for courage to implement change.
The event served as a platform for the Governor to address critical state reforms, security, and the moral obligations of leadership and the laity alike.
Addressing the congregation, the Governor emphasized that governance required the courage to implement change, a trait he challenged those in government, the Knights, and the laity, to mirror in their Christian witness, while praising Bishop Ezeokafor for his ‘leadership and public purpose’, noting that progress often required doing what was right, even when it was difficult.
A central theme of the Governor’s address was the economic and social impact of the state’s Burial Law, as he expressed concern that outsiders were currently taking up local artisan jobs on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays because many people remained tied down by burial activities.
To combat waste and protect citizens, the Governor proposed a tightening of the legislation, and suggested deepening the implementation process, as part of the next step which involved strengthening the Burial Law to save the people from themselves.
In a bold move toward social order, the Governor announced a crackdown on fraudulent religious leaders and revealed that several ‘fake pastors’ who had been exploiting the populace had been apprehended.
The Governor concluded by urging the Knights to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth, maintaining that a new Anambra was on the rise through firm standing and unwavering principles.
The spiritual tone of the event was earlier set by Rev Fr Evaristus Ifeanacho, the Diocesan Secretary, who delivered a stirring homily focused on the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer.