The death of Pope Francis, aged 88, was announced by the Vatican shortly before the start of the plenary meeting that took place this Monday in the National Assembly and which began with the observation of a minute of silence in his memory.
In a note of condolence, the president of the National Assembly, Carolina Cerqueira, noted that Pope Francis denounced social injustices, defended the most vulnerable and called for peace between nations.
"He was a Pope of dialogue, of listening, of mercy. A man who put Christ back at the center of the Church, of global consciousness, calling all believers and non-believers alike to conversion through love and who never stopped calling for a better distribution of the world's wealth and maintained a special focus on defending social justice and environmental causes," she said.
In a post shared on his Facebook account, opposition leader Adalberto Costa Júnior, who was received by Pope Francis in August last year, expressed "deep regret and pain in my heart" with which he received the news, highlighting the "serene wisdom" with which the Pope spoke about social justice, human dignity and solidarity.
"Pope Francis was a beacon of hope in a world sometimes plunged into darkness. His humility, love for the poor, courage in reforming the Church and tireless defense of dialogue between cultures, religions and peoples make him one of the great moral references of our time," said the leader of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).
Adalberto Costa Júnior invited all Angolans "to unite in prayer for his soul and keep his message of peace, justice, compassion and fraternity alive."
"May this time of mourning call us to renew our commitment to a more fraternal, supportive and dialogue-oriented country," added the president of UNITA.
The Liberal Party, led by Luís Castro, the most recent national political party that identifies itself as "conservative and respectful of the institutions that guard traditional morality", also noted that "not only has a Pope left us, but rather, the Pope of simplicity, mercy and service to those most in need has departed".
"Wherever he is, Pope Francis will continue to be, for humanity, the eternal symbol of mercy, truth and hope," he said in a funeral note released by the party.
President João Lourenço considered it a hard blow for the world and an immense loss for Catholic Christians.
Francis "was a leader committed to peace, social justice and the disadvantaged," says the message sent to Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, the Vatican's camarlengo.
Pope Francis died on Monday at the age of 88, after 12 years of a pontificate marked by the fight against sexual abuse, wars and a pandemic. Born in Buenos Aires on December 17, 1936, Francisco was the first Jesuit to reach the leadership of the Catholic Church.
Francisco was hospitalized for 38 days due to bilateral pneumonia, having been discharged on March 23.
