African leaders agreed late on Monday in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa to extend the work of the AU commission for the next six months, including that of outgoing Chair Dr. Jean Ping.
The decision was made after long hours of a closed session.
Gabon’s President Ali Bongo told journalists while leaving the conference room on Monday that it was decided to extend the commission work for six months until another election is held in Malawi.
The decision was reached following the stalemate in the election contest between Dr. Ping and the South African Foreign Minister Dlamini-Zuma, both of whom could not poll the majority of votes required to be elected chairman of the African Union Commission.
According to Bongo, it was felt that the election was very tight, taking much time than was expected.
It was earlier decided to appoint Ping’s deputy as interim chairperson of the commission for six months. This decision was later rescinded.
Source African Press Agency
African News from NetNewsPublisher.com
