Africa-Press – Tanzania. Bishop Bernadin Mfumbusa of Kondoa Diocese
A Tanzanian Catholic bishop, who has been undergoing treatment in Nairobi, died on Tuesday morning after returning home on Saturday.
The Tanzania Episcopal Conference confirmed the death of Bishop Bernadin Mfumbusa of Kondoa Diocese in the central region. He was 64.
“He suffered a cardiac arrest on Monday morning, and his condition worsened from then on,” TEC secretary general Fr Charles Kitima said in a video statement sent to the Star.
Mfumbusa died at 5.45 am on Tuesday at Benjamin Mkapa Hospital in Dodoma, the Tanzanian capital, Fr Kitima said.
“It’s sad that we have lost a youthful bishop who was just 64 years old, having been born in 1962,” Fr Kitima said. He was the first bishop of Kondoa, which was established in 2011.
The burial has been set for April 22 in Kondoa.
Several credible sources in Nairobi and Dodoma told the Star the bishop had been undergoing treatment in a Nairobi hospital.
Unconfirmed reports indicate Bishop Mfumbusa died of complications arising from a road accident that occurred while driving himself. He left Nairobi on Friday.
The bishop’s death comes days after Pope Leo XVI appointed him to the Vatican Dicastery [Department] for Communication, together with Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo of Kinshasa (DRC) and Cardinal Cristobal Romero of Rabat (Morocco).
Bishop Mfumbusa was born on April 1, 1962, in Arusha. He was ordained a priest on June 14, 1992, for the Diocese of Dodoma.
Following his ordination, he served in pastoral and academic roles within the Church in Tanzania, including teaching and diocesan administration.
On March 12, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him the first bishop of the new Diocese of Kondoa. He was consecrated on May 15, 2011 at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Kondoa.
Bishop Mfumbusa is recognised for his contributions to Church communication structures in Africa, including at the Pan-African Episcopal Committee for Social Communications (CEPACS), where he was the president.
