Manila, April 24 -- Pope Francis had appointed 45 Filipino bishops, or more than half of the country's 86 active Catholic bishops, during his 12-year pontificate, according to the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

The late pontiff's first Filipino appointee was Romblon Bishop Narciso Abellana in October 2013, six months after his election as the new pope, said the article posted on the CBCP news website Wednesday night.

The last appointment, meanwhile, was made on April 14, 2025, just one week before Pope Francis' death, where he named Msgr. Glenn Corsiga of the Diocese of Dumaguete as bishop of Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay.

The other bishops appointed by the late pope are: Bp. Patrick Daniel Parcon of Talibon; Bp. Sev...