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George Maponga in MIDRAND, South Africa
The First Ordinary Session of the Sixth Parliament of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) has officially opened here today with the holding of a first plenary session for all MPs and subsequent meeting of five regional caucuses to consider and make proposals for Amendments to the Rules of Procedure.
The epochal move to effect amendments to Rules of Procedure seeks to give PAP more gravitas and relevance as the body seeks an eminent role in tackling challenges stunting socio-economic growth on the continent.
PAP president Chief Fortune Charumbira tasked the body’s five regional caucuses namely Southern Africa, West Africa, East Africa, North Africa and Central Africa to effect proposals for the first amendments to the rules of procedure for the first time since founding of the continental parliamentary body in March 2004.
Chief Charumbira says the amendments will address several lacunas in the operations of PAP to make the body more effective in dealing with challenges confronting the continent.
”Amendments to the Rules of Procedure will help address some gaps that we have been experiencing. When PAP was formed 18 years ago, the idea was just to come up with something that worked but along the way, we saw some gaps. In order to make PAP more effective, we want to make amendments to the Rules of Procedure,” he said.
”We also hope these amendments will make committees stronger. For Example, we will be unbundling some committees like trade in view of the creation of the African Free Trade Area. We want to make our committees stronger through these amendments.”
Chief Charumbira noted that during the current session, PAP will also come up with recommendations that will be tabled at the summit of African Heads of State in February next year that will, among other things, include possible solutions to challenges slowing socio-economic development.
Among some of the PAP’s major concerns is the issue of unconstitutional take-over of power in some African countries with Chief Charumbira singling out countries such as Sudan, Chad, Burkina Faso and Mali as putting a blemish on Africa’s reputation as a thriving democracy.
The issue of food security on the continent in the wake of climate change will also be under the microscope during the current PAP session with the body seized with coming up with ways of everting the
ghost of hunger.
Women and youth issues will also hog the limelight with PAP lining up conferences during the current session to brainstorm on ways of empowering them and extricate them from the abyss of marginalisation.
In the line models, laws will be created by PAP to give impetus to this drive to empower women and youths across the African continent.
Online Reporter