Next Pope maybe African 18 cardinals for papal election
Nigeria’s Peter Cardinal Okpaleke and 17 other cardinals from Africa are among the 135 cardinals eligible to elect the next Pope.
There are 252 cardinals, but only 135 cardinals have voting status and are eligible to vote for the next Pope when the conclave begins.
Meanwhile, 108 of the electors were appointed by Pope Francis, 22 by his predecessor, Pope Benedict and five by Pope John Paul II.
Pope Francis died on Easter Monday of a cerebral stroke, which led to a coma and irreversible heart failure.
His death was officially recorded at 7:35 am (local time) on April 21 through electrocardiographic thanatography, according to the Vatican.
The Cardinal electors of African origin are John Njue (Kenya), Dieudonne Nzapalainga (Central African Republic), Peter Okpaleke (Nigeria), Nakellentuba Ouedraogo (Burkina Faso), Protase Rugambwa (Tanzania), Robert Sarah (Guinea), Berhaneyesus Souraphiel (Ethiopia).
Others are Desire Tsarahazana (Madagascar), Peter Turkson (Ghana), Jean-Paul Vesco (Algeria), Cristobal Romero (Morocco), Stephen Mulla (South-Sudan), Fridolin Besungu (DR Congo), Ignace Dogbo (Ivory Coast), Stephen Brislin (South Africa), Arlindo Furtado (Cape Verde), Antoine Kambanda (Rwanda,) and Jean-Pierre Kutwa (Ivory Coast).
