Pope Leo used the last full day of his four-nation Africa tour on Wednesday to speak out against wealth inequality, urging believers to work to bridge the gap between rich and poor as he traversed oil-rich Equatorial Guinea.
The pope, who has attracted the ire of United States (US) President Donald Trump after becoming more outspoken against war and despotism, was also due to visit a high-security prison that human rights groups say holds political prisoners in abusive conditions.
Pope, the first US Pope, started the day by flying about 325 kilometres from Malabo, located on Bioko Island in the Gulf of Guinea, to Mongomo, on the eastern border with Gabon on the edge of the Congo Basin rainforest.
At a Mass in the largest religious structure in Central Africa, the pontiff urged Equatorial Guineans “to serve the common good rather than private interests, bridging the gap between the privileged and the disadvantaged.”
The Pope, who has debuted a forceful new speaking style during the Africa tour, also decried poor treatment of “prisoners who are often forced to live in troubling hygienic and sanitary conditions”.
–Reuters–
