Anthony Olubunmi Okogie was born in Lagos on 16 June 1936, into the royal family of Uromi in Edo State — his father was a son of King Ogbidi Okojie. Ordained a priest on 11 December 1966 and drafted as an army chaplain, he took a licentiate in sacred theology and was consecrated a bishop on 29 August 1971, serving as auxiliary in Oyo and then Lagos. On 13 April 1973, at thirty-six, John Paul II's predecessor Paul VI named him Archbishop of Lagos; he served for thirty-nine years, retiring on 25 May 2012.
As president of Nigeria's bishops' conference (1994–2000) and of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Okogie became one of the country's most fearless public voices under military rule. In February 2002 he publicly offered to die in place of Safiya Hussaini, a Muslim woman sentenced to stoning for adultery in Sokoto, calling Shariah “unconstitutional” and thanking God at her acquittal. John Paul II created him a cardinal on 21 October 2003, with the title of Beata Vergine Maria del Monte Carmelo a Mostacciano; he voted in the conclaves of 2005 and 2013 — in the latter from a wheelchair.
Consequential Quotes
I thank the Lord because Safiya is now free. It is a victory against the Shariah, the Islamic law. I totally agree with the Nigerian Government, which has described the Shariah as unconstitutional.
I was already an altar server in the church. I liked the way the priests acted… I was still very rascally then and they were trying to mould us. They succeeded partially.
Major Works & Initiatives
Offered his life for Safiya Hussaini
Volunteered to die in place of a woman condemned to stoning.
Archbishop of Lagos
Thirty-nine years in Africa's largest city.
President of Nigeria's bishops
The Church's voice under military rule.
Controversies
On the record
No significant public controversies reported.