Pope Leo XIV Appoints Archbishop Emmanuel Obbo as Apostolic Administrator of Jinja Diocese

JINJA, Uganda — October 29, 2025

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV has appointed the Metropolitan Archbishop of Tororo, Most Rev. Emmanuel Obbo, AJ, as the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Jinja, following the passing of Bishop Charles Martin Wamika.

The announcement was made on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, by Fr. Georges Kwami Kouwonou, the Chargé d’Affaires at the Apostolic Nunciature in Uganda. Fr. Kouwonou is currently overseeing the Nunciature after the transfer of the Apostolic Nuncio.

“His Holiness Pope Leo XIV has appointed His Grace Most Rev. Emmanuel Obbo, AJ, Metropolitan Archbishop of Tororo, apostolic administrator sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis of Jinja Diocese,” the statement from the Nunciature read in part.

The Latin phrase sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis means that Archbishop Obbo will oversee the diocese while the episcopal seat remains vacant and until the Holy See provides further direction.

The Nunciature also expressed gratitude to the Diocesan Board of Consultors, which has been guiding the Diocese of Jinja during the transition period.

Unlike an ordinary bishop or archbishop, an apostolic administrator governs not in his own name, but in the name of the Pope, exercising jurisdiction under Canon Law 371. The Canon stipulates that an apostolic administration is a portion of the people of God not yet erected as a diocese by the Supreme Pontiff, due to special and particular circumstances.

Archbishop Obbo’s appointment does not affect his current responsibilities as the ordinary of the Archdiocese of Tororo. He will govern the Diocese of Jinja in the name of the Pope and coordinate its day-to-day pastoral and administrative work until a new bishop is named.

The Diocese of Jinja became vacant following the death of Bishop Charles Martin Wamika on October 22, 2025. Bishop Wamika, who was laid to rest at St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Jinja, was the first Ugandan to head the diocese since its establishment in 1966. He succeeded Bishop Willigers of the Mill Hill Missionaries.

The Diocese of Jinja was carved out of the former Kampala Diocese during a Vatican restructuring that also created the Kampala Archdiocese.