Former Vice President of The Gambia, Madame Fatoumatta Jallow Tambajang has been defeated by former Deputy Governor of National Bank of Rwanda, Nsanzabaganwa who got elected through 42 votes out of 55 member states while the former has 13 votes, to get the positioin of deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission.
The former Deputy Governor of National Bank of Rwanda, Nsanzabaganwa was elected by 42 votes out of 55 member states.
Reacting to her election, Dr Nsanzabaganwa expressed gratitude and appreciation.
“My very sincere gratitude and appreciation for the trust and honor that the Heads of States and Government of the African Union have bestowed on my country and in my person,” she said.
The new Deputy Chairperson expressed her commitment “to serve with dedication and to the best of my ability under your wise guidance.”
JallowTambajang, who was initially endorsed by The Gambia and ECOWAS said Nigeria’s candidature as Commissioner of Peace led to the withdrawal of her bid.
In a Facebook post on Saturday she wrote: “On February 2nd, ECOWAS Heads of States had an extraordinary summit via videoconference and decided to have Ghana and The Gambia step down their Candidates for Deputy Chairperson of the AU. This means that I am no longer in the running for deputy chairperson of the AUC. Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso and Gambia all also withdrew their commissioner candidates as well, in order to allow Nigeria to run as a sole regional candidate as Commissioner of Peace.
“Since my nomination by The Gambia government in September 2020, I have been busy campaigning but like the saying goes, man proposes but God disposes. Today as the voting process of the new AU Commission kicks off, I would like to thank all those who have supported my campaign; I will continue to support the reform and growth of the AU and wish the incoming Commission the best of luck.”
Moussa Faki Mahamat was also re-elected as Chairperson of the African Union Commission.
South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa handed over the annual chairmanship of the union to President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Felix Tshisekedi.
The 34th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union is underway in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
This year’s summit is being held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic that crippled the world.
African leaders are expected to discuss the continent’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area, and security issues.
