On Monday, the continent’s political dignitaries convened at the Pan African Parliament in Midrand, Johannesburg, to elect new leadership and in all the pandemonium that broke out, Zimbabwe’s Barbara Rwodzi stood out as an audience favourite.
Pan African Parliament disrupted by chaos
Africans from all walks of the Motherland were tuned into the events that unfolded in Johannesburg, and boy was it A-grade tomfoolery.
Riding on the tensions from last week’s sitting where EFF leader Julius Malema was captured on record threatening to kill a Malian member of parliament, the chaos was all the more prevalent during Monday’s proceedings.
From what we understand, much of the commotion was caused by accusations of voter tampering at ballot boxes. In one video clip, an unidentified member was seen flinging a kick towards ANC Chief Whip Pemmy Majodina who, before the video feed cut off, was seen launching forward to attempt a rebuttal.
What in the Dr Malinga is happening here #PanAfricanParliament pic.twitter.com/KuMm33SMKW
— uJuniya! (@JnrCarrl) May 31, 2021
Here are more clips of the pandemonium that broke out at the parliamentary sitting:
Who is Barbara Rwodzi?
Rwodzi, a member representing Zimbabwe’s constituency, was the viral subject of the chaos that broke out at the Pan-African Parliament election.
From asserting herself as a fierce voice to be reckoned with in a room full of uncouth men, to enforcing strict health protocols, the watching audience was clearly impressed by Zimbabwean MP.
Fighter Sanitizer #PanAfricanParliament pic.twitter.com/HtMR2wqSrB
— Gosebo Mathuhle wa ga Mathope (@Gosebo_Mathope) May 31, 2021
We did some digging and here is a summary of what we found out about Rwodzi:
- Apart from her career in politics, Rwodzi is also chief executive of House of BarRue Knitwear, a successful business that exports handmade garments.
- She also heads up Machine Electrical Distributors as CEO.
- She is an alumnus of the African Women’s Entrepreneurship Program (AWEP).
- She is a board member of the Environmental Management Agency of Zimbabwe.
- She obtained her Master’s qualification in Business Administration (MBA) Leadership and Corporate Governance at Nottingham Trent University in 2012.