Chaos erupted at the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) over the election of a new parliamentary president. Members of the Pan-African Parliament were meant to elect a new president but the southern African caucus demanded reform, saying the position should be on a rotational basis.
Elections in Africa have gone beyond being just a democratic process, instead the electoral process has become a brutal contestation among influential rivals on who should reign next instead of ideas and ideology.
West and Central African members demanded that elections go ahead as scheduled, while Pemmy Majodiena, African National Congress's chief whip vowed to lay charges of gender-based violence against Senegalese politician Djibril War.
In another dramatic twist of events, Economic Freedom Fighters leader, Julius Malema threatened a fellow member of parliament from Mali and vowed to 'kill the member outside'. During the chaos, delegates continued to shout into their microphones.
"We are being harassed by South Africans. The continent is being held hostage by South Africans"
The continental parliament also known as the African Parliament is the legislative body of the African Union. The PAP exercises oversight, and has advisory and consultative powers. Initially the seat of the Pan-African Parliament was in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, but it was later moved to Midrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Members of the southern African delegation led by Zimbabwe's female politician, Barbra Rwodzi proposed for the geographical rotation of leadership aimed at giving each of the five regions a turn to lead the executive. An ad-hoc committee was appointed to conduct the electoral process, but the committee's presentation was interrupted before an election could take place.
"This election cannot proceed without the procedure and advice that came from Arican Union legal council. No rotation, no election, I declare" - Barbra Rwodzi
West African delegates shouted that southern Africa was delaying the process because they didn't have the numbers, that's a fair point. Numbers matter in politics. The southern African delegates shouted back, citing that, the presidential candidate from Mali should be disqualified over the coup in that country. "What can they teach us about democracy?"
PAP Members are fighting for power amongst themselves and in the process, disrespecting the honourable institution. Their actions disrespect their countries of origin and the constituencies they represent. Threats of assassination are uninspiring and democracy has failed at continental level.
Africans expected members of PAP to discuss core issues, including the plight of Africans who are succumbing to Covid-19 every day. The political unrest in Mali deserved a serious and robust debate and the issue surrounding the supply of Covid-19 vaccines should have been the major focus on the agenda.
Now the damage has been done by influential "Pan-Africans". Members of PAP have shown indiscipline and visuals of gender-based violence and assassination threats have gone viral and these scenes are projecting a bad African image.
What will young aspiring politicians learn from chaos and gender-based violence? Has the African family run out of strategies for conflict resolution? How will our friends around the globe portray Africans, when their leaders behave in a barbaric manner? Do we even need the Pan-African Parliament?
The President of Zimbabwe's Chief Council, Honourable Senator Chief Fortune Charumbira is the current acting president of PAP and just like his fellow southern African counterparts, Chief Charumbira supports the doctrine of rotational leadership. Senator Charumbira is the preferred candidate for the southern African caucus.
Meanwhile, the Pan-African Parliament has been suspended indefinitely after days of chaos and delays on the presidency vote. The move is in favour of the southern African delegation's calls for a delay and the intervention of the African Union.
The suspension of PAP might be a win for Rwodzi, Malema, Charumbira and others but the fact still remains, southern Africans are outnumbered by their counterparts in West and East Africa, who are each backing a candidate for the presidency. The PAP has 229 members with national parliaments from each member state allowed to send up to five MPs.
Women are leading the fight for geographical rotation, its quite telling... I think their position would be fair and democratic if implemented; once the African Union and PAP adopts the rotational principle, the matter of presidency is settled and members can begin to focus more on serious issues affecting Africa.
It would also mean that, the Francophone states will stop undermining and suppressing the North and Southern member states. It doesn't matter which part of Africa one comes from. You might be from the East or the West, the North or the Southern part of the continent, but we are one family, we are the United States of Africa and our problems will forever be the same.
@stajicesimmz