Mozambique’s vote for the president and the ruling party may extend his 49-year rule

MAPUTO, Mozambique (AP) — Mozambique will vote for a new president on Wednesday in an election expected to extend the party’s 49 years in power since the southern African country gained independence from Portugal in 1975.

Daniel Chapo, 47, is a candidate for the ruling party Front for the Liberation of Mozambique, or Frelimo, which wants to take over from President Filipe Nyusi, who has served two terms.

Analysts say the biggest challenge to Chapo and Frelimo’s rule may come from 50-year-old independent Venancio Mondlane.

People will also vote on the composition of Parliament and provincial governors in the country of about 33 million people who have been through a 15-year civil war that ended in 1992, and have recently been rocked by ongoing jihadist violence. in the north.

Ending the insurgency and bringing stability to Cabo Delgado province – where 1.3 million have fled their homes and more than half remain homeless – is a promise from both candidates.

Counting of votes must begin immediately after the close of polls in one-day elections. The first results from other areas are expected from Thursday, and the full results must be submitted to the Constitutional Council within 15 days of the closing of the polls for verification and official announcement. About 17 million people are registered to vote.

The credibility of this election will be a big concern for him, as the left-wing party Frelimo has been accused of collating votes and falsifying results in previous elections, including last year’s local elections, when it was announced that it won 64 out of 65 municipalities.

Frelimo has been denying allegations that the election was disrupted. Mozambique’s regional and international election monitoring groups, including the European Union.

Frelimo successfully established a one-party state after independence and fought a civil war with the Mozambique National Resistance, or Renamo, for a decade and a half. The country, where Portuguese remains the official language, held its first elections in 1994, two years after the peace agreement.

Renamo will also contest the election, with party leader Ossufo Momade, a military commander in the civil war, running for president. The former rebel group has seen its popularity decline, and peace between Frelimo and Renamo has been fragile, with further fighting breaking out in 2013. Momade and the outgoing leader Nyusi signed another peace agreement in 2019, but it is still tense.

The independent Mondlane, who defected from Renamo, has focused on the youth of Mozambique who are frustrated by poverty and unemployment. The country has a long coastline on the Indian Ocean, but that vulnerable area has been hit by cyclones and droughts in recent years.

Meanwhile, in 2016 it was revealed that government officials and others embezzled more than two billion dollars in loans from other countries that were kept secret, causing the economy to suffer.

Mondlane was with the coalition of opposition parties, but they were prevented from running in the elections, which raised suspicions against Frelimo for trying to control the elections. Mondlane is now supported by a new group called Podemos, which means “we can” in Portuguese.

Although Mondlane, a former banker, represents a new challenge to Frelimo, many analysts expect the ruling party to remain in power. It has been declared the winner with more than 70% of the votes in the national elections in the last five years.

Risk firm Pangea, which provides security and investment advice to developing countries, said Chapo’s election was “carefully handled” by Frelimo.

Chapo worked as a broadcaster and television presenter before becoming a law professor. He was the governor of the southern province of Inhambane – Mozambique’s leading tourism region – but won a surprise internal party vote in May to become Frelimo’s presidential candidate.

Chapo will be the first leader of Mozambique born after independence if he wins.

_____

AP Africa News: