Luanda: A total of 11 of the 16 members of the National Electoral Commission (CNE) took office on Thursday during the VII Ordinary Plenary Meeting of the National Assembly (AN). The new commissioners were appointed by the AN, following proposals from political parties and coalitions with parliamentary seats, in accordance with the principles of majority rule and respect for parliamentary minorities.
According to Angola Press News Agency, Maria Augusta de Macedo Rodrigues, Manuel Sabonete Camati, Eduardo de Sousa Magalhes, Cremildo Jos© F©lix Paca, Miguel Rodrigues Cazevo, Maria de Lourdes Sousa Abrantes Veiga, Gilberto Saldanha Afonso Neto, and Felismina Gando Manuel da Silva, proposed by the MPLA, were among those who took office. Additionally, Adriana Chitula Sapiss³ from PRS and Lucinda Roberto Augusto da Costa from FNLA were also sworn in by the President of the National Assembly, Carolina Cerqueira.
Commissioner Onilda Patrcia Camo§o Quingongo from PHA did not take office due to being subject to a precautionary measure in the Constitutional Court. The remaining members are to be appointed by the largest opposition party, UNITA.
The CNE consists of seventeen members, including a judicial magistrate who presides over the commission based on a competitive examination and is appointed by the Superior Council of the Judiciary. The number of CNE members proposed by political parties or coalitions with seats in parliament is determined by a resolution of the National Assembly at the end of the term, in line with election results.
In a related development, Luzia Inglªs Van-Dºnem and Jos© do Carmo Manuel took office as deputies of the National Assembly, replacing Vicente Pinto da Costa and Emiliana Nhengo, respectively. Both parliamentarians, from the MPLA Parliamentary Group, suspended their mandates due to illness.
