PAP representatives unanimous in approval of elections in Swaziland and Angola

PAP representatives unanimous in approval of elections in Swaziland and Angola

GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg

African parliamentarians the 10th Pan African Parliament have commended the governments of Angola and Swaziland for setting good examples in the management of presidential and parliamentary elections.

The legislators were debating the reports prepared the Pan African Parliament election observer missions for parliamentary election in Angola that took place on September 25th and Swaziland on 19th the same month.
Presenting the report on the Swaziland elections, Mary Mugyenyi the leader of the PAP election monitoring mission in the Kingdom said the small Southern African country could give a model that can be followed by other African states: “Swaziland was smooth, we witnessed a successful election, free, fair, transparent and credible.”

Mugyenyi however suggested that there should be studies to assess the role of political parties in African governments saying that success of Swaziland was because of the presence of a popular monarch, she added that political parties divide citizens according to regions, tribes and promoters disintegration: “The Swazi people don’t want political parties, the traditional system of government has proved to be a successful mode of government for them more than other modern systems throughout the continent.”

Mugyenyi was supported by Batille Tosiki from Uganda who asked whether Africa was ready for western style democracy: “In Africa political parties further disorganize government affairs as they thwart the voices of their members in the name of the party, this impedes internal debates,” he said.

She however said that the Swazi system needed to find an effective measure to make their political system competitive for women as the current system was unfair to women since many that are in political positions are only appointed.


Parliamentary elections were held in Swaziland for the House of Assembly on 19 September 2008. It was the first election under the new constitution introduced in 2006, and the first time that foreign observers were allowed to monitor an election in the country.

Political parties remained banned in Swaziland, so all candidates for the 55 seats were independents. Following the election, King Mswati III was to appoint 10 more MPs. The National Assembly would then elect 10 members for the Senate, with the King appointing 20 more


Presenting to the house the report on legislative elections in Angola Idriss Ndele Moussa leader of the PAP election monitoring te3am in Angola said that the country had organized free and fair elections: “the elections in Angola was exemplary to the whole of Africa.”

However he said that Angola government machinery had supported pro government candidates and largely left opposition candidates starved of resources: “there was a disproportionate use of public resources and public resources served were employed to aid pro government candidates.”

Ndele added that to its credit, the media was evenly balanced for all the 14 political parties stranding equally, but added that his team had been delayed by government officials in accreditation processes, “at some offices we were left out because of the offices could not be opened in some cases till midday which affected our work.”

He however commended the electoral commission in Angola for its efficient organization of the polls, “the voting process was very well managed and the UNITA -National Liberatino Front-UNITA the main opposition party to the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), conceded defeat the next day after the results were declared, but he also criticized the composition of the commission saying that the ratio of 7 members of the ruling party to the opposition party’s 3 was not equally representative.





Jose Franca Van Dunem from Angola said that his country had suffered a great deal in a long lasting conflict which began It is the first election in Angola since 1992; prior to the 1992 elections, the country had suffered from a 27 year a civil war. Even the 1992 elections were followed by the second phase of the Angolan Civil War, which continued until 2002, Dunem added that the government since 2002 had been run by a national unity and reconciliation cabinet.


In the open house response to the reports MPs were unanimous in their approval of the elections of both countries. Sam Njuba from Uganda said: “Angola and Swaziland are a good example for Africa coming after the disappointments of Kenya and Zimbabwe.

Dan Nkodo from Cameron cautioned AU members that had not ratified the AU charter on democracy and good governance, “it is only Mauritania that has ratified the document and this embarrassing because Mauritania is currently under a military junta. By tolerating the crisis in Zimbabwe the AU is setting a wrong precedent,” added Nkodo.