Ejike Camillus Anthony Ebenezer Mbaka known as Father Mbaka is a

Catholic cleric The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

, musician and the founder of Adoration Ministries,

Enugu Enugu ( ; ) is the capital city of Enugu State in Nigeria. It is located in southeastern part of Nigeria. The city had a population of 820,000 according to the 2022 Nigerian census. The name ''Enugu'' is derived from the two Igbo words ''Énú ...

, Nigeria. He is noted for being one of the most prominent religious leaders in the south-eastern part of Nigeria.

Early life and background

Mbaka was born in Amata Ituku in

Awgu Awgu is the Headquarters of Awgu Local Government Area (LGA) in Enugu State, Nigeria and the Headquarters of Awgu Catholic Diocese. The Catholic Cathedral is said to resemble a space ship when viewed with Google Earth. The town is also the Orien ...

Local Government Area of Enugu State, where he grew up with his family who were palm wine tappers. He attended St. Vincent's Secondary School, Agbogugu in Awgu Local Government Area of Enugu State for his secondary education.

Priesthood

Mbaka attended Seat of Wisdom Seminary, Owerri, Imo State and St Joseph's Seminary

Ikot Ekpene Ikot Ekpene, also known as The Raffia City, is a historic town in south-southern state of Akwa Ibom. It is the political and cultural capital of the Annang ethnic group in Nigeria (Nair, 1972). The town is located on the A342 highway that par ...

Akwa Ibom Akwa Ibom State is a state in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered on the east by Cross River State, on the west by Rivers State and Abia State, and on the south by the Atlantic Ocean. The state takes its name from the Qua Iboe ...

State, where he was trained for priesthood. On 29 July 1995, He was ordained a priest of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, in the order of Melchizedek.

Controversies

Alleged support of Buhari in the 2015 general elections

On 31 December 2014, Mbaka told a congregation that the then president

Goodluck Ebele Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957)Lawson Heyford, ''The Source'' (Lagos), 11 December 2006. is a Nigerian politician who served as the President of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to fo ...

had failed to stem the tide of insecurity and corruption in the country, and urged them to vote the administration out. Fr. Mbaka's call for a change in administration is in tandem with his priestly-prophetic ministry. Fr. Mbaka has been consistent in directing, advising and forewarning every administration in Nigeria since he was ordained a Roman Catholic priest.

Seeking compensation for supporting Buhari

On 28 April 2021, Mbaka called on

President Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician and current president of Nigeria since 2015. Buhari is a retired Nigerian Army major general who served as the country's military head of state from 31 December 1983 to 27 Au ...

to resign from his office over the worsening insecurities in Nigeria. In response to Mbaka's call, the Nigerian Presidency released a statement through

Garba Shehu Mallam Garba Shehu born on (November 27, 1959) is a Nigerian Journalist and politician who serves as the Senior Special Assistant, Media and Publicity to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (b ...

that Mbaka is allegedly angry because President Buhari ignored his request for contracts after he asked for contracts as compensation for his support in 2015 and 2019.

Rumor of Rivalry with Ebube Muonso

It was once alleged that there occurred incidents of rivalry, but this false rumor was debunked by both the Reverend Fathers Mbaka and Emmanuel Obimma(Ebube Muonso).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mbaka, Father Living people Nigerian clergy People from Enugu Year of birth missing (living people)