The Mozambican Bar Association (OAM) said this Friday, 27 October, that the country is facing its “biggest” post-election crisis and that the municipal process “has been plagued by serious flaws”, calling on the Mozambican President (PR) to intervene and admitting a new vote.
In a statement signed by the president, Carlos Martins, it is said that the President of the Republic, Filipe Nyusi, must assert his constitutional powers, while also demonstrating unequivocally that he is an aggregating element for Mozambicans, “in these crucial and difficult times”.
“Furthermore, and regrettably, until now, no conscious comment has been heard from any political agent with governmental responsibilities regarding this election and, above all, its irregularities, which in itself further increases the perception, which is becoming more and more established, that these elections already had a winner announced,” reads the statement, emphasising that “we must do everything we can to avoid a bloodbath”.
In the same statement, the president said that throughout yesterday, Friday, the country “witnessed episodes of extreme violence at various points” and that “the discredit” is “sustained by the very high number of irregularities pointed out in the electoral process by the district courts, which send out a message that crime and manipulation pay off in Mozambique”.
Faced with this situation, the OAM appeals to Frelimo, the ruling party, pointing out that “it has an enormous historical responsibility to stabilise the political environment in Mozambique, which over time has known how to manage these situations, and should not, for this reason and because of the institutional burden it carries, be seen as an organisation that hinders the democratic process, using democratic institutions for this purpose”.
“Only by assuming this responsibility will it be possible to perpetuate its historical legacy, otherwise it will reinforce the understanding of voters and the international community that our democracy is a farce,” which is why “it is imperative to involve all the living forces of society in order to build bridges and find solutions to the electoral conflict that has arisen at national level.”
Last Thursday (26), the National Electoral Commission (CNE) announced the victory of Frelimo, the ruling party, in 64 of the country’s 65 municipalities, while the MDM, the third largest party, won only in Beira.
The president of the CNE, Carlos Matsinhe, who read out the minutes of the results, said that eight members of the body voted in favour of the general count, five against and two abstained.
Renamo, the largest opposition party, which before the 11 October vote controlled eight municipalities out of the then 53, claimed electoral victory, including in the capital, Maputo, but ended up losing, according to CNE data, in all the municipalities.
Since 11 October, observers, non-governmental organisations, civil society and opposition parties have pointed out various irregularities in the vote counting process, including alterations to the data in the original minutes and public notices – already recognised by some district courts – leading to street protests across the country, which worsened yesterday, the day after the CNE announced the results.
“We can see that Mozambicans have completely discredited the Electoral Administration Bodies,” he said, recalling that the OAM has been following “the current electoral process with particular interest and acuity, and has even been part of the observation team.”
“This internal and external view of the process allows us to see that, according to information gathered and made public, and even supported by court rulings, the electoral process has been plagued by serious flaws that raise serious and well-founded doubts about its freedom and fairness,” says Carlos Martins, adding that, on Thursday, “it was the turn of the president of the CNE himself, the Reverend Carlos Matsinhe, to confess, when announcing the results of the elections held a fortnight ago, that the process had been riddled with irregularities”, which “he said would be investigated”.
“It’s very irresponsible, to say the least, for a quasi-judicial institution like the CNE to remain eternally silent for several long nights, only to announce investigations that are already extemporaneous, perhaps with little useful effect,” he criticised.
According to Mozambican electoral legislation, the results of the ballot still have to be validated and proclaimed by the Constitutional Council (CC), the country’s highest electoral judicial body.
“We hope that the Constitutional Council will defend the democratic rule of law and not open a front to attack our young constitutionalism,” Carlos Martins appealed, recognising that this is “the biggest crisis ever” since the first multiparty elections were held in Mozambique in 1994.
