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His Eminence Polycarp Cardinal Pengo, Archbishop of Dar- Es- Salaam, Tanzania, has been elected the new President of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM).
His election took place at the end of a one week Congress on Evangelisation held in dar-es-salaam from January 16-21.
Cardinal Pengo replaces Most Rev. John Onaiyekan, Archbishop of Abuja, Nigeria, who had earlier expressed the desire to “bow out as President of SECAM.”
Archbishop Onaiyekan explained that after having served SECAM for nine years on its Presidential Council, six years as Vice-President and the last three years as President, he felt it was proper to give way for another brother Bishop to run the Association.
The position of First Vice-President went to the Archbishop of Dakar, Senegal, Most Rev. Theodore Andrien Sarr, while Bishop Francesco Joao Silota of Chimoio Diocese in Mozambique, becomes the Second Vice- President.
Archbishop Onaiyekan expressed his gratitude to all those who had contributed towards moving SECAM to its present level of development.
He pledged his readiness to undertake any assignment that the new President may ask him to do for the growth of the Continental Association.
In his acceptance address, Cardinal Pengo promised to continue with the good work that has been carried out by his predecessors, particularly Archbishop Onaiyekan and the other members of the Presidential Council of SECAM.
He, therefore, appealed to all members of the Association to remain committed and dedicated to the mission and vision of SECAM.
The Congress was attended by Cardinals, Archbishops and Bishops, members of SECAM, delegates of the Clergy, men and women Religious, the Laity of the Church of Africa, Madagascar and other Islands, representatives of Sister Churches and Catholic Development Organisations from Europe and America.
Among those present at the opening ceremony were His Eminence Ivan Cardinal Dias, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, Vatican; the Apostolic Nuncio to Tanzania, Most Rev. Joseph Chennoth and Mr. Edward Lowassa, the Prime Minister of Tanzania, who represented the President of his country. In their addresses to the Congress, they all emphasised and expressed their solidarity with SECAM in her numerous challenges.
Cardinal Dias conveyed to the Congress the cordial salutations of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI and read a message of support and encouragement from the Holy Father signed by the Secretary of State, His Eminence Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone.
Cardinal Dias expressed his joy about his presence in this territory familiar to him when, he was Secretary at the Nunciature in Madagascar and later as Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana, Togo and Benin.
He prayed that the hope that Africa holds for the Universal Church would grow from strength to strength.
Other goodwill messages were delivered by representatives of Raffaele Cardinal Martino, President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace; Archbishop Joseph Cordes, President of Cor Unum; Archbishop Patrick John Foley of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Catholic Relief Services, MISEREOR, Church in Need and Pax Bank.
Welcoming participants, Mr. Lowassa thanked SECAM for choosing Dar-Es-Salaam for the Congress and apologized for the absence of Cardinal Pengo, who was in Kinshasa for the burial of His Eminence Frederick Cardinal Etsou Nsambi Bamungwabi.
The participants observed a minute’s silence for him.
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