Online Reporter
George Maponga in MIDRAND, South Africa
The 5th Ordinary Session of the 6th Parliament of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) officially opened here yesterday with a call for Africa to get more representation in bodies such as the UN to reflect the new multilateral world order.
In his opening remarks at during the official opening ceremony, the continental legislature’s president, Chief Fortune Charumbira, rallied the continent to push vigorously for two permanent seats for Africa in the UN Security Council.
He called for a fresh push for the implementation of the 2005 Ezulwini Consensus, where African heads of state under the AU ambit agreed that the continent should get two permanent seats in the UN Security Council and five non-permanent seats.
This would recalibrate the global power balance that was tilted in favour of a few powerful nations, leaving Africa without a voice.
According to Chief Charumbira, it was high time for Africa to reclaim its voice and status on the global stage if the continent was to realise prosperity for its more than one billion citizens.
“The Ezulwini consensus represents a pivotal moment in Africa’s diplomatic history. It is more than just a policy position, it is a call for justice, equity and true representation in global governance, particularly within the United Nations,” he stated.
The PAP president said this year AU theme was: “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent Through Reparations.” This resonated well with the continent’s aspirations for its interests to be fully represented on the global stage.
It was not fair for Africa to continue to be marginalised on issues to do with international peace and security despite playing a prominent role in peacekeeping missions worldwide.
Chief Charumbira noted that a number of challenges continued to stalk the continent, especially in areas of peace and security, calling on Africa to be a master of its destiny.
It was foolhardy for the continent to rely on external help for its problems instead of proffering “African solutions for African problems”.
Speaking at the same occasion the South African deputy minister of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation Ms Thandi Moraka, announced that her country was waiving visas to all African passport holders with effect from October 1 this year as part of efforts to promote continental integration.
Ms Moraka paid tribute to African countries for standing by South Africa at a time when her country faced geopolitical pressures due to bullying by some global superpowers over her country’s support for a multilateral world order.
She also pledged her country’s full support for Africa to receive reparations for past colonial injustices that are partly to blame for the sorry state of African citizens on the continent.
PAP’s 5th Ordinary Session of the 6th parliament was officially opened by the Angolan Ambassador to Ethiopia, Professor Miguel Cesar Domingos Bembe as the chairperson of the AU’s Permanent Representatives Committee.
After the official opening ceremony, Chief Charumbira signed a memorandum of understanding with the chief executive officer of the African Peer Review Mechanism Ambassador Marie-Antoinettr Rose Quatre, for close collaboration to entrench good governance on the continent.
Speaking after signing the landmark MoU, Chief Charambira hailed the development as a model of institutional collaboration between AU organs in pursuit of a better and stable Africa.
Chief Charumbira noted that the MoU is a stepping stone to help PAP work with APRM to promote good governance, democracy, justice and rule of law across the African continent.
As direct representatives of the people, PAP would use its collaboration with APRM for capacity building and making sure that national governments implement people-centric policies that speak to the Agenda 2063 targets for Africa.
