Background
His mother was the daughter of Tribal Chief Chukwuani of Ozalla Nkanu.
Catholic priest Catholic bishop
His mother was the daughter of Tribal Chief Chukwuani of Ozalla Nkanu.
Onaga attended Street Anthony’s Primary School, Agbudu, Nigeria, from 1964 to 1972.
Callistus Valentine Onaga is the fifth child of Vincent and Victoria Onaga. He received his secondary education at the Sacred Heart Seminary in Nsude, Nigeria from 1973 to 1975. Onaga earned his Bachelor of Divinity degree in Sacred Theology from the Urban University in Rome in 1987.
He was ordained to the priesthood on August 8, 1987.
Within the diocese, Onaga has held several positions to include pastor at Saint Mary's Church in Enugu, Vicar General, Administrator of Holy Ghost Cathedral, and committee chairman for the inauguration of the Diocese of Awgu. On February 9, 2009, Onaga was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI as the Enugu diocesan bishop upon the resignation of Bishop Anthony Okonkwo Gbuji.
He was ordained as the Bishop of Enugu on September 5, 2009 by Archbishop Renzo Fratini. His principal co-consecrators were Archbishop Valerian Okeke and Bishop Gbuji.
Later that same day, Onaga appointed Monsignor Luke Adike as the diocesan Vicar General.
At its first Plenary Meeting in 2009, this conference recognized his appointment as a diocesan bishop. As the diocesan bishop, Onaga is the legal holder of its microbank. Onaga is scheduled to be the guest speaker for the Igbo Catholic Community United States of America (ICCUSA) Eighth Annual Convention between April 23 and 25, 2010 in Sacramento, California.
Onaga is a member of the Association of Episcopal Conferences of Anglophone West Africa as an ordinary. He is a member of the Catholic Bishops" Conference of Nigeria.
