Southern Regional Caucus refutes plans to hold PAP to ransom
The Pan African Parliament - Southern Regional Caucus - has dismissed claims by some of their colleagues at PAP that its last week’s meeting was intended to hold Parliament to ransom during the November sitting this year.
Yeremia Chihana, Chairman of the Southern Regional Caucus said they met in Midrand- South Africa from the 13th to 17th of September 2021, to deliberate on the events of the previous session of May to June 2021, and to also prepare for the November 2021 session. “The caucus wants to place it on record that the invitation letter written by the Parliament of Zimbabwe convening this meeting was the initiative of the Regional Caucus due to the vacant position of the Secretariat.
“This meeting was convened in accordance to ( sic) the Rules of the PAP, specifically Rule 83, 84 and 85. It is therefore malicious for those who spread rumours about the objective of the meeting, as to stage a coup in the PAP and hold it at ransom. “Out of the 10 countries in the region, eight were present in the meeting. Only two, namely Lesotho and Angola, were absent,” Chihana explained. According to the chairman the PAP seat is located in South Africa and therefore it is incumbent upon the Southern Africa region to ensure that they do not have the May- June situation happening again. Our people have high hopes for the PAP as a continental Parliament to serve as a beacon of democracy in Africa, he told the media this week. Chihana stated that, Parliament is a
very important institution to exercise checks and balances in the Executive and provide a voice for the voiceless. “That Parliament plays an important role in setting the tone for the public discourse on the Continent. It is this task that propelled us as the Regional Leadership to come together so as to ensure that we do what our people expect from us. The region among other things seeks to ensure that it brings to end the terrorism that is taking place in Mozambique, Cabo Delgado
Province. Pledged its solidarity with the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo, following the eruption of the deadly Volcano, Nyiragongo in the Northern City of Goma in the North Kivv Province,” Chihana explained. The caucus leader pointed out that the Region also seeks to use the November session to call for the waiver of specific trade related aspects of Intellectual Property rights relating to the manufacturing of COVID- 19 Vaccines and related drugs. He said it is therefore malicious that the region is meeting because it is planning a takeover of the PAP. He added that the meeting further resolved that the November session will be held in Midrand, South Africa as normal. “We resolved that the issue of rotation of the Presidency of the PAP cannot be viewed outside the establishment of the AU. The Constitutive Act in Article 6 as amended by the Protocol on Amendments to the constitutive Act of the African Union, adopted by the Extraordinary session in Maputo on the 11th July 2003 clearly provides that the Chairpersonship of the Assembly shall be held by the Head of State elected at the beginning of each Ordinary session on the basis of rotation for a renewable period of one year,” said Chihana, adding that as a result of the above, the Assembly has practiced the principle of rotation consistently. He maintained that the refusal to implement the principle of rotation is a direct contradiction with the AU. The region confirmed their unwavering support to their Regional candidate Chief Charumbira and that it will work with all delegates to ensure that the elections run smoothly, he stated.