Pilgrim of hope: thanking God and looking forward to meeting him and humanity in Abuja, Nigeria
Sr. Elizabeth Odinakachi Mgbaramuko’s Six Years Service at the National Catholic Secretariat (NCS), Accra
I started work at the NCS on Monday, 1st July, 2019, as Communications and Programmes Officer, Department of Social Communications (DEPSOCOM), with special duties to the office of the then Secretary General of the GCBC, Very Rev. Fr. Lazarus Anondee. In that capacity, I assisted the office in handling correspondence, writing reports and served as Recording Secretary to the NCS Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and Senior Management Team (SMT) Meetings. I also served as Recording Secretary to the Diocesan Finance Committee.
Administrators’ Meeting that held annually at the NCS. I served as Recording Secretary to some NCS Ad hoc committees, especially the joint Planning Committee of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) and the NCS, for the GCBC’s hosting of the 19th SECAM Plenary Assembly, which was held at GIMPA, Accra, in July 2022. I also took part at some levels of planning and execution of some of the statutory and non-statutory programmes of the GCBC, as well as in the internal programmes of the NCS.
Pilgrim of hope: thanking God and looking forward to meeting him and humanity in Abuja, Nigeria
Sr. Elizabeth Odinakachi Mgbaramuko’s Six Years Service at the National Catholic Secretariat (NCS), Accra
I started work at the NCS on Monday, 1st July, 2019, as Communications and Programmes Officer, Department of Social Communications (DEPSOCOM), with special duties to the office of the then Secretary General of the GCBC, Very Rev. Fr. Lazarus Anondee. In that capacity, I assisted the office in handling correspondence, writing reports and served as Recording Secretary to the NCS Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and Senior Management Team (SMT) Meetings. I also served as Recording Secretary to the Diocesan Finance Committee.
Administrators’ Meeting that held annually at the NCS. I served as Recording Secretary to some NCS Ad hoc committees, especially the joint Planning Committee of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) and the NCS, for the GCBC’s hosting of the 19th SECAM Plenary Assembly, which was held at GIMPA, Accra, in July 2022. I also took part at some levels of planning and execution of some of the statutory and non-statutory programmes of the GCBC, as well as in the internal programmes of the NCS.
Apart from carrying out my assigned duties, I took delight in engaging some of the GCBC personalities in exclusive interviews, on some topical issues of the day or their attainment of significant landmarks in their life and ministry. Prominent among these exclusive conversations was the one I had with the then-President of the GCBC, the Most Rev. Philip Naameh, on the Golden Jubilee of SECAM, held at Kampala, Uganda, from September 20th-29th July 2019, especially on the “Kampala Document” which was a fallout from the jubilee; and the one with the Most Rev. Charles Gabriel Palmer- Buckle, then Vice President of the GCBC, on the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic, and some others. It was one area of proficiency in my writing vocation that was employed judiciously in the present apostolate. All my exclusive conversations with the personalities and issues involved were published in “The Catholic Standard” Newspaper and on social media. The first three years of my life and apostolate at the NCS were very vibrant. Life and health seemed to have shone forth from me, as I glowed in the apostolate.
COVID-19 Pandemic
However, within the same period, the COVID-19 pandemic, which lasted from 2019 to 2020/2021, proved a very challenging and devastating period for everyone. At the high point of carrying out our responsibilities, some of us were said to have tested positive for the vicious virus, but thanks be to God, we all survived it.
During the period, the GCBC called out to individuals, Parishes, Dioceses, societies in the Church and institutions to send donations (materials or financial or both) to the NCS to enable the Conference to reach out to the victims in affected areas, especially to the Health Centres in the interior villages. The GCBC also made a cash donation to the Government in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
