Chief Justice Raymond Zondo has sworn-in Paul Mashatile as Acting President of South Africa as President Cyril Ramaphosa arrived in Burundi.
CHIEF Justice Raymond Zondo has sworn-in Deputy President Paul Mashatile as the Acting President of the Republic of South Africa in the absence of President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has arrived in Burundi for a summit.
“Deputy President Paulus Shipokosa Mashatile has been sworn-in by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo as the Acting President of the Republic of South Africa,” Vukani Mde, spokesperson of the deputy president, said on Saturday morning.
Earlier, the Presidency announced that Ramaphosa had arrived in Bujumbura, Burundi, to participate in the 11th High Level Segment of the Regional Oversight Mechanism (ROM) of the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes Region.
The Summit for Heads of State and Government is taking place on Saturday.
“The PSC Framework, otherwise known as the Addis Ababa Agreement, was signed on 24 February 2013 through a AU/UN-brokered framework aimed at stabilising the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” according to Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya.
At the time, signatories to the agreement included Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, the DRC, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
In early 2014, Kenya and Sudan became the 12th and 13th signatories of the Framework.
“The PSC Framework’s key mandate is to end recurring cycles of devastating conflict in eastern DRC, which impacts on stability and development in the Great Lakes region.
The framework also aims at addressing the root causes of conflict in eastern DRC and the Great Lakes region,” Magwenya narrated.
“The summit takes place against the backdrop of the deteriorating political and security situation in the eastern DRC, caused by a resurgence of the M23 Movement that has led to tensions between the DRC and Rwanda.”
The summit will receive an update on various initiatives aimed at de-escalating tensions between the two countries.
“The summit will deliberate on the deployment of East African Community (EAC) troops and their role in dealing with negative forces in the eastern DRC, especially the M23.
“Since 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the PSC Framework, the summit will focus on the revitalisation of the framework and will consider a plan to enable this,” said Magwenya.
He said the current crisis caused by the clashes between Sudan Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces would “likely” be discussed during the summit.
President Ramaphosa is accompanied by Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Alvin Botes.
IOL
