Angola: Vice President Bids Farewell to Apostolic Nuncio


Luanda — Angolan Vice President, Esperança da Costa, participated, on Wednesday, in Luanda, in the farewell ceremony to the Apostolic Nuncio of Angola and São Tomé and Príncipe, Dom Giovanni Gaspari.

The event took place in the Catholic parish of Sagrada Família (Holy Family), the place chosen for Dom Giovanni Gaspari to say goodbye to the Angolans.

The ceremony was attended by the National Assembly Speaker, Carolina Cerqueira, the ruling MPLA party’s vice-presidents, Luísa Damião, opposition UNITA MP, Arlete Liona Chimbinda, the former Vice-President of the Republic, Bornito de Sousa, and members of the diplomatic bodies accredited in the country.

When speaking at the celebration, the Nuncio expressed feelings of gratitude for the time he spent with Angolans over almost four years.

He said that he was a witness to the path and events that marked the church in Angola and São Tomé and Príncipe, being an opportunity to become aware of the challenges that the world faces today.

According to the religious man, serving as the Pope’s representative in Angola was a great “gift” that will forever be engraved in his heart and mind, as serving the people constituted a reason for human and spiritual enrichment.

In turn, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Carolina Cerqueira, said that the prelate leaves a great legacy of faith and love in the church.