By Amindeh Blaise Atabong in Yaounde
William Shija: Deceased CAP secretary general |
The secretary general of the
Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, CPA, William Shija has died barely two days to the
official launching of the 60th Commonwealth Parliamentary
Conference, CPC.
His
demise in London on Saturday morning postponed the start of the opening ceremony for the 34th
small branches conference scheduled to precede the 60th CPA conference
here in Yaounde.
"The
Commonwealth's worldwide community of parliaments has learned today of the
sudden passing of the secretary general of the Commonwealth Parliamentary
Association, Dr William F. Shija. The Commonwealth at large shares in a sense
of enormous sadness and loss," Commonwealth secretary general, Kamalesh
Sharma expressed in an official statement Saturday morning.
Shijahad
died following an illness, though details of the health problem were not
readily available.
Back at the
Hilton hotel in Yaounde where the small branches conference was scheduled to
take place, CPA members led by the speaker of Cameroon’s national assembly
observed a minute of silence for the departed scribe.
67
year-old William Ferdinand Shija was a Tanzanian politician,
and a former member of the African Union Pan-African Parliament.
Before
entering politics, Shilja worked as a civil servant and a teacher.
After his higher education in India and the United States
of America, he taught communications in Tanzania.
Shija was
a member of the Tanzanian national assembly from 1990 to 2005. He has also held
the positions of minister for science, technology and higher education, minister
for information and broadcasting, minister for energy and minerals and minister
for industries and trade.
As member
of the Pan-African Parliament in 2004 and 2005, he chaired the committee on
education, culture, tourism and human resources. He was appointed the first African secretary
general of the CPA on September 9, 2006 and took up the position on January 1,
2007. Since assuming the post of secretary general of the CPA, he has lived in London. Shija was
married with five children.
As CPA scribe, Shija was the chief executive officer
of the association. He was primarily responsible for representing the association
and promoting its aims and objectives.
Shija had the task to maintain close links with the branches
and provide advice and guidance on their activities and management. He equally
acted as secretary to meetings of the executive committee, the general assembly
and the plenary conference.
Enter CPC launching
The 60th
conference of the CPA officially opens in Yaounde today.
The
reputed international conclave which started on October 2 and scheduled to end
on October 10 is pegged on the theme: “Repositioning the Commonwealth for the
post-2015 development agenda.”
Going by
the chairperson of the CPC organising committee, Hon. Monjowa Emilia Lifaka,
today’s launching will be the hallmark of the 8-days-meeting.
Cameroon’s
head of state and CPA vice patron, Paul Biya is expected to be part of the
launching ceremony at the Yaounde conference Centre; officials at the civil
cabinet of the presidency have confirmed his attendance in an official
statement.
In the meantime, Mary Muyali had told reporters that 700 delegates had
registered as of October 1. The conference which in essence is the 36th for the
African region is grouping 120 participants of 17 delegations.
During
the conference, participants will brainstorm on specific themes which touch on
democracy, development and parliamentary issues.
About CPA
The
Commonwealth Parliamentary Association links members of national, state,
provincial and territorial parliaments and legislatures across the
Commonwealth. Its mission is to promote the advancement of parliamentary
democracy by enhancing knowledge and understanding of democratic governance. It
seeks to build an informed parliamentary community able to deepen the Commonwealth’s
democratic commitment and to further cooperation among its parliaments and
legislatures.
Principal
CPA officers are: Rt. Hon. John Bercow
MP (speaker of the House of Commons, United Kingdom); chair of the executive committee:
Hon. Dato’ Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal MP, minister of rural and regional development,
Malaysia; and the deceased secretary general; Dr William F. Shija.
The
CPA pursues its objectives by means of: annual commonwealth parliamentary
conferences, regional conferences and other symposiums; inter-parliamentary
visits; parliamentary seminars and workshops; publications, notably The
Parliamentarian and newsletters on CPA activities and parliamentary and
political events; and Parliamentary Information and Reference Centre
communications. Active CPA Branches now exist in more than 180 national, state,
provincial and territorial parliaments and legislatures, with a total
membership of over 17,000 parliamentarians.
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