Renamo: “We are challenging legal thinking in the country” – Mozambique Elections

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Renamo: “We are challenging legal thinking in the country” – Mozambique Elections

6:10 CAT | 20 Dec 2023

Mozambican National Resistance (RENAMO) holds the last march of 2023 in Maputo to contest the electoral results of October 11 [Photo: Romeu da Silva/DW]

Renamo held its last march of the year in Maputo on Saturday (16-12). It contests the electoral results, with an extraordinary appeal submitted to the PGR demonstrating that the party “is capable of reforming the state”, says Venâncio Mondlane.

This Saturday, the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo) held its last march of the year in Maputo, contesting the victory of the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo) in the October 11th election.

The bodies duly elected take office in January, but Renamo believes that an extraordinary appeal it has submitted to the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) could annul the decision of the Constitutional Council

“The ruling lacked grounds,” said Venâncio Mondlane, head of the Renamo list in the city of Maputo, who led the march, adding hopefully: “If Mozambique still has the remnants of a republic, there will be a positive response from the PGR to the appeal,”

Venanciommm.dw_ — *FILE – “If Mozambique still has the remnants of a republic, there will be a positive response from the PGR to the appeal,” says Venâncio Mondlane [File +photo: Silaide Mutemba/DW]*

“Too much political interference”

Mondlane regrets the presence of “a lot of political interference”, but believes nevertheless that there are “all the conditions for the suspension of the Constitutional Council’s ruling.”

Debates in various circles of justice regarding the legal battle have questioned the irrevocability of the Constitutional Council’s ruling.

For Venâncio Mondlane, there is a lack of “a global and systematic analysis of all legislation” and adds that “for the first time, Renamo is challenging legal thinking in Mozambique”.

“We are challenging the way people think legally in this country. Renamo is demonstrating that it is in a position to re-form the Mozambican state into a normal state. The special and exclusive circumstances of this ruling, whether or not it is appealable, are only Renamo found out in the law,” he emphasizes.

CC ruling can be annulled, says legal advisor

Elvino Dias, one of Renamo’s legal advisors in this electoral dispute, states that, “if there is no political interference in the PGR, the Constitutional Council’s ruling could be annulled”.

Renammommm.dw_ — *Renamo promises to return to the country’s streets in 2024 until “electoral integrity” is restored. [Photo: Romeu da Silva/DW]*

Dias defends his position by stating that, “Article 659 of the civil code has mandatory requirements for a sentence or ruling to be considered valid”. “With the violation of any of these requirements, the sentence must be declared null and void and manifestly unfair,” he adds.

Elvino Dias claims that the Constitutional Council’s ruling violates elementary principles of justice.

“In the basis of the ruling it is not understood why the Constitutional Council removed 30,000 votes that were supposedly for Frelimo and attributed them to Renamo. By proceeding in this way the body put itself in the place of the voter and voted in their place.”

In addition to submitting appeals to restore “electoral integrity”, the main Mozambican opposition party does not recognize the results of the repeat elections in the municipalities of Nacala Porto, Milange, Gurué and Marromeu, which gave victory to Frelimo.

This Saturday’s march in the city of Maputo passed off without incident. Renamo has pledged to return to the country’s streets next year and keep protesting until “electoral integrity” is restored.

Source: Deutsche Welle