NAMIBIAN Speaker of Parliament, Peter Katjavivi has lauded his Zimbabwean counterpart, Jacob Mudenda over the peaceful way he handled former President Robert Mugabe’s resignation last November.
By Tinotenda Munyukwi
Addressing journalists after paying a courtesy call at Mudenda’s office last Friday, Katjavivi said they followed the events culminating in Mugabe’s resignation with keen interest and were marvelled at the peace and stability that prevailed in the country during that period.
“Namibia is a close friend of Zimbabwe, so we were observing events, which were taking place here and I can confirm that we were very happy that everything ended amicably well and there is peace and stability prevailing in Zimbabwe, what more can I say other than we are delighted,” he said.
Katjavivi said “there are lessons to be learnt by Africa”, following events that unfolded in Zimbabwe, expressing gratitude for the priceless opportunity he had been accorded to share and exchange notes with Mudenda on the business of Parliament.
He commended plans by Zimbabwe to construct a new Parliament building, drawing parallels with his country, which is also in the process of acquiring new infrastructure for its parliamentarians.
“We are Speakers, so we were talking about parliamentary issues, sharing ideas and comparing notes, and that forms the basis of strengthening the two sister parliaments to work together more closely.
“We have an old (national assembly) building that goes back to the days when Namibia was still under the colonial system, so we are looking at building a new national parliament and my colleague is also exploring similar ideas because Parliament is a very important institution,” he said.
