No less than 100 Catholic faithful on Sunday staged a peaceful protest in Abakaliki, seeking the recall of Rev Fr in charge of Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Rev Fr. John Odey.
Fr. Odey, Daily Trust gathered, was suspended by the new bishop in the state, Bishop Peter Chukwu.
Odey, before his suspension, was in charge of the Holy Trinity in Otinyi Ngbo in Ohaukwu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
The protesters on Sunday at about 8am besieged the Pastoral Centre Chaplaincy in Abakiliki to protest the suspension of the clergyman.
The protesters, who carried placards with inscriptions, were drawn from the different parishes of the Diocese.
They blocked the entrance, causing vehicular and human traffic along the major road in the area.
The protesters almost disrupted the service at the Bishop Court, Abakaliki as many parishioners joined in the exercise.
One of the protesters, Bro Romanus Igwe, who spoke to journalists, said that they were at the Bishop Court to protest the indefinite suspension of the priest.
He alleged that there had been a lot of injustices and intimidation in the Abakaliki Diocese of the Catholic Church.
He expressed regret that a lot of issues that should have followed canonical due process were being politicised and called on the new Bishop, Peter Chukwu, to urgently address some of the ills in the Diocese.
Daily Trust gathered that the suspension of the Priest known for his criticism in the state followed a book he recently launched in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital which generated an uproar within the Catholic community and beyond.
