By Daanyaal Matthews

The Pan-African Parliament, an arm of the African Union, has been publicly ridiculed after the reported appointment of notorious self-proclaimed pastor, Uebert Angel Mudzanire, as its Ambassador for Interfaith Dialogue and Humanitarian Affairs. This reported appointment has been questioned and called ‘ironic’ by many especially after the African Union just recently held an event celebrating 20 years of preventing and combating corruption.

Mr. Angel has been documented by Al-Jazeera, in their Gold Mafia series, allegedly involved in the smuggling of gold out of Zimbabwe, an operation that is estimated to be costing the Zimbabwean state millions of dollars.

In the documentary, Mr. Angel, who was filmed with secret cameras, stated in a discussion with undercover journalists that he had smuggled millions before and that he could assist in the smuggling of billions by utilizing his diplomatic passport.

Speaking on Drive Time on Thursday, Hopewell Chin’ono, Zimbabwean journalist and Human Rights Defender, stressed the embarrassment, and implication, this act has caused not only for the Union but for the continent, stating:

“This is at the detriment of the ordinary citizen, and this will have an implication more so on citizens in the continent going abroad or doing business abroad as the African Union has lost its respect in terms of fighting corruption, and in terms of making sure there is no illicit movement of money in the continent or out of the continent. By appointing this individual, they are saying that they don’t care.”

Mr. Mudzanire has allegedly received the support of Zimbabwe’s ruling party, the Zanu-PF, as during Al-Jazeera’s investigation he claimed that the President of Zimbabwe, Emmerson Mnangagwa, was supporting his gold smuggling operation. These claims have been furthered by Mr. Chin’ono who alleges that Mr. Angel found his new position through the speaker of the Pan-African Parliament, Fortune Charumbira, who himself is a Zanu-PF member.

These allegations, and sentiments, expressed by Mr. Chin’ono have been shared by his compatriots the Zimbabwean journalist detailing the outcry:

“There was a massive revolt form Zimbabweans in general on social media and some members from opposition parties, but it is a reflection of how Africa is governed or how most parts of Africa is governed – they don’t care about what it means, the implication, of making such toxic corrupt and embarrassing appointments,” said the Human Rights Defender.