In this SPECIALIZED EXCLUSIVE ARTICLE, C-Advocate presents an emotional memory lane journey, where the Founder and Executive Director of the Centre for Social Awareness, Advocacy and Ethics (CSAAE), owners of the C-Advocate newspaper, Fr. Godswill Agbagwa tells the story of his rise from an Achilles heel of vulnerability to a vantage point of victory, in episcopal and humanitarian endeavors.
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“ I was born into a socioeconomically advantaged family.
My father, late Mr. Charlyman Peters Agbagwa was a successful edupreneur. He had a vocational college. He also opened retail shops for my mom, did some agribusiness, was involved in politics and community building.
As a child, I lacked nothing. Though I grew up in the village, I had access to the same basic amenities that those in the city had.
There was no NEPA then in my community but my dad ran generator daily. There was no pipe borne water in my village but my dad had underground water tank.
My primary education was at community primary school Umueze Amaimo and the quality of education then was top notch.
My secondary education was at St. Peter Claver Seminary, Okpala. It was an expensive boarding school compared to public secondary schools. But something happened when I was in SS1 and that thing changed my life: MY FATHER DIED 3 DAYS TO CHRISTMAS.
The death of my dad ushered in an era of poverty, pain and suffering in my family. In fact the poverty started setting in months before my father’s death as my family struggled to manage his year-long illness.
We spent all his savings trying to save his life. Yet, he died. With nothing left to care for SEVEN teenagers, my young mother, late Mrs. Evelyn Peters Agbagwa – went through hell trying to raise us.
Poverty gradually relocated to our family. My mother withdrew my younger ones from expensive boarding schools and put them in public schools. But she refused to withdraw me from the seminary.
In fact, my mother made my elder sister – late Mrs. Henrietta Peters – to give up her admission into nursing school because she could not pay tuition for me and her. Nursing school was expensive then as it is now.
That was how I managed to complete secondary school at SPCS, Okpala.
One painful experience that has refused to leave my mind was WAEC registration. My mother had no money to pay for me. She saved and saved and saved but could not save enough.
Just a day to the registration closing date, she sold her only ‘Hollandis’ wrapper – saved for special occasions – to pay for my WAEC. I was the last to register in my class just on the last day of registration.
Imagine what could have happened to me – the kid that took first position in the class – if I did not write WAEC?
Another incident was when I was about to enter spiritual year. My mother and elder brother who was still in the university bought everything in the prospectus for me.
But there was no cash for tuition and transport. I started crying. My mom joined the cry. After a period of crying, God intervened.
Our elderly neighbor, late Mama Iheoma walked in. She came to say good bye to me but met us crying. She inquired from my mom what the matter was. My mom told her that there was no money for my tuition and transport back to school. The holy woman went back to her house, brought N300.00 and gave it to me. I wiped away my tears, picked my bag and left.
That day, I took an oath never to depend on anyone for survival and I was about 18 years old then. From the spiritual year, I went to philosophy and theology – 10 years of learning – leading to my ordination as a priest on December 20th, 2003.
But the ten years of learning was tough financially. It was a financial struggle but I made it to the priesthood, safe and sound. On the day of my ordination, I remembered all I went through and vowed to fight poverty and underdevelopment.
I did not want another child to go through what I went through. I did not want another mother to go through what my mother went through. I did not want another sibling to give up college due to poverty.
I dedicated my priesthood to empowering young people, transforming communities building better societies.
I launched the CSAAE a few years after my ordination to pursue this dream.
As I celebrate my 21st priestly anniversary, I say thank you to God and to you all for the progress so far. The journey continues until we achieve a better society where all can find support and encouragement to work hard, live in dignity and feel proud to belong “.
C-Advocate joins all men of goodwill to celebrate this towering accomplishment, a bold walk to freedom, freedom for the less privileged and for all beneficiaries of the work done by the CSAAE.
To benefit from the CSAAE’s citizens – friendly interventions, call the toll free line displayed at the base of this page and be part of the advocacy for the defense of human rights, a trajectory that has seen Fr Godswill Agbagwa succeed.
