Pope appoints Pinoy archbishop as nuncio to Tanzania

A Filipino archbishop has been appointed as "papal nuncio" or Pope Benedict XVI's representative to the Republic of Tanzania, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) announced recently. The CBCP said Benedict XVI named Archbishop Francisco Montecillo Padilla as papal nuncio to the East African nation on November 10. "(Padilla) will take over the post left vacant by Archbishop Joseph Chennoth who was named apostolic nuncio to Japan last August 2011," the CBCP said in an article posted on its news site. Before being named as papal nuncio to Tanzania, the 58-year old Padilla served as the apostolic nuncio in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands since May 2006. A native of Cebu, Padilla has a brother — Archbishop Osvaldo Padilla — who is currently the apostolic nuncio in South Korea and Mongolia. - VVP, GMA News