We are here to serve you - ex-Colombia senator
LOBAMBA – “Forging relations between Eswatini and Colombia can better the lives of both countries citizens”
These sentiments were shared by former Republic of Colombia Senator, Apostle John Milton Rodriguez, during a courtesy visit paid to Senate President Lindiwe Dlamini on Thursday.
The former senator who was accompanied by his family is currently in the country for the Easter Convention at Jesus Calls Warship Centre on invitation by the President of the Conference of Churches, Bishop Robert Kasaro.
The former senator who is also a man of the cloth said his visit to Eswatini was important and assured his commitment to use his political connections to broker relations between the two countries.
He was welcomed by Dlamini, who said as a former senator; Rodriguez felt that while he was in the kingdom, he should visit Parliament. “We are excited to receive him particularly because as Parliament, one of our key mandates is parliamentary diplomacy and we believe in establishing relations with as many countries as possible and also establishing friendship groups between Parliaments,” she said.
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Dlamini said above all, Rodriguez was a man of God and to have him set foot in Parliament ground was indeed a blessing.
She said as Parliament, they were looking forward to more such visitors coming into the country in future, to make new relations as well as strengthening existing relations between countries. She mentioned that as Parliament they were open to visitors as in the past they have welcomed school children who attended State openings and sittings.
The Senate president mentioned that during the visit, Clerk to Parliament Benedict Xaba took the liberty to breakdown the monarchical democracy to the guests, which was based on grass roots democracy
as it was the people who elected a person they knew and were confident could go and represent their interests in Parliament.
Meanwhile, former Senator Rodriguez said establishing relationships between countries were important and he was grateful for the warm welcome and hospitality they had received since arriving in the kingdom.
He mentioned that such visits were important and would better the lives of the people in both countries.
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Rodriguez assured that emaSwati could count on them and they would always be Eswatini’s ambassadors and servants in their home country. He further assured of a better future for both Colombia and Eswatini.
He said similar to Eswatini, Colombia was also a major producer of sugar, however, Colombia also produced petroleum and gas. He said for him and his family, it was a great opportunity to visit Eswatini and open doors to new countries and make new relations. “You can count on us to serve you. Our country has two coasts and two different accesses to the oceans being the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific
Ocean, which has the potential to open doors for trading with Eswatini,” he said.
Rodriguez assured that his country was friendly with all countries and even though he finished his term in Senate last year, he still had great relationships politically and the current mayor in his home city was a person that they supported as well as the governor. He stated that relationships between Colombia and Eswatini were highly possible and would benefit both countries.
He revealed that in Colombia, there were 38 different political parties and one of the parties was one that he helped to found with principles and values around life liberty and family. He said they believed that the foundational principle for society was tradition and values and that was their line of action.
The former senator welcomed the reception from the Senate president and assured that Eswatini could count on them while insisting that they were there to serve the nation. He further announced that Bishop Kasaro was invited to visit Colombia in June 2024. “It will be a great pleasure to have him in our country,” he said.