UNITA's parliamentary group lamented on Saturday the death of Raul Danda, the party's deputy, who lost "a valuable and distinguished servant of Angola".
"Easygoing and always willing to serve, he was always available for any request from the parliamentary group, for the fulfillment of programming tasks, in contact with citizens and in moral and material support to those who needed it, despite the accumulation of functions as Prime Minister of the Shadow Government of UNITA, so his death removes from our midst a valuable and distinguished servant of Angola," it said in a statement.
UNITA received "with deep pain and consternation" the news of Raul Danda's "premature and treacherous" death, victim of illness, at the age of 63, recalling the path and characteristics of the former vice-president of the party, the largest in the opposition, and president of the parliamentary group of his party.
"He was an exemplary cadre, a fearless patriot, a polyglot, a man of letters, of culture and of art, a mobilizer and staunch defender of the less equipped and of Angolan and African identity, having served the tasks entrusted to him with pride and dedication," he said.
Raul Danda "inspired several generations in the party and in society, for his dedication to the causes he believed in, for his forceful and well-founded interventions in parliamentary debates and other public spaces, always accompanied by a saying in Ibinda, his mother tongue," stressed the UNITA parliamentary group.
The note concludes with the sending, "in this hour of pain and mourning" of the "most heartfelt condolences" to the bereaved family, "on behalf of his deputies, advisors and staff", informing that "the funeral program will be made public in due course".
The death of Raul Danda was confirmed by UNITA deputy Nelito Ekuikui, who, speaking to Angolan public radio, "lamented the loss of a great son of Angola."
"The country lost a great picture, a great son who knew how to rise to the challenges that were placed before him. We are all shocked," lamented Nelito Ekuikui, also provincial secretary of UNITA in Luanda.
The politician, born in the Angolan province of Cabinda, was born on November 13, 1957, and was also an announcer at Vorgan radio, former UNITA broadcaster, National Radio of Angola (RNA), teacher and actor.
