MP Suddenly Dies After Short Illness

JUBA: A long-serving Member of the South Sudanese Parliament has died in the South Sudan capital Juba after a short illness. Veronica Louis Renzi was aged 73 and had been a law maker for 47 years. Renzi represented a constituency in Western Equatoria State under Salva Kiir’s government. She was a nominated member of the SPLM in the Revitalized Transitional Legislative Assembly (R-TNLA). 

Eye Radio quoted Renzi’s family member Prince Tadeo Mario Sasa as confirming that the law maker collapsed in her house and was on October 29 rushed to a health facility in Juba where she breathed her last.

“This is really a very sad moment for us as a family for losing her at this moment. What happened was a sudden death, because she has been fine and working well all along until yesterday morning when she went to the bathroom after brushing and taking tea with the family without any problem. We discovered that she had collapsed in the bathroom and when we tried to take her to the hospital, she passed on.”

Prince Sasa, who is from Azande Kingdom, also spoke of Renzi’s cause of death, with findings from preliminary investigations suggesting that she could have suffered a stroke.  “In the report, the doctors mentioned that she had a stroke; that is to say, there is a lot of explanation behind it, maybe it could have been a stroke or high blood pressure,” Eye Radio further quoted Sasa as saying.

It should be remembered that Renzi had represented Tambura County since 1975 when the Adis Ababa Agrement put a stop to the first Anyanya War. Prince Sasa paid tribute to Renzi for her admirable efforts in promoting education and pushing for infrastructural development in the county she represented for long.

“She was one of the people who championed the building of school infrastructure, especially in Tambura where she helped build Tambura One (Primary) School and Mopio Girl’s School,” Sasa added.

Additional Reporting: Eye Radio