First Deputy Speaker, Bernard Ahiafor and the Member for Asutifi South, Collins Dauda have been sworn in as Members of the Pan African Parliament.
The Pan-African Parliament (PAP), also known as the African Parliament, is the legislative body of the African Union. It held its inaugural session in March 2004.
The Parliament exercises oversight, and has advisory and consultative powers, having lasting for the first five years. Initially the seat of the Pan-African Parliament was in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, but was later moved to Midrand, South Africa. The goal in establishing the parliament was creating a space where people from all states of Africa could meet, deliberate, and pass policies on issues that affect the entire continent of Africa.
They were sworn in on Monday November 3 in South Africa.
The Parliament is composed of a maximum of five members per member state that has ratified the Protocol establishing it, including at least one woman per Member State.
These members are selected by their member state and their domestic legislatures. The overall goal for the parliament is to be an institution that has full legislative power whose members are elected through universal suffrage, as stated by former South African President Jacob Zuma in his opening speech to the first ordinary session of the second legislature of the Pan-African Parliament on October 28, 2009.
The Pan-African Parliament is composed of three sections. The Plenary is the main legislative and deliberation section of the Parliament, where representatives meet regularly to discuss issues in Africa and potential solutions.
The Bureau is the leadership section of the Parliament, made up of a president and four vice presidents, all of whom are elected by delegates in the Plenary. The final section of the Parliament is the Secretariat, which is the organisational body of the Parliament and is chaired by a Clerk, Deputy Clerk, and an Acting Deputy Clerk. Together, these structures maintain and carry out the goals and protocol set out to govern the Parliament.
