Mozambique government announces by-election for Nampula

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Mozambique government announces by-election for Nampula

11:55 CAT | 25 Oct 2017

File photo / Aerial view of Nampula city, capital of Nampula province

The Mozambican government announced yesterday the holding of a by-election in Nampula in the north of the country, following the assassination on October 4 of the president of the municipality.

“Once [the by-election] has been decreed, the National Elections Commission (CNE) will be notified and continue the process,” said Ana Comana, spokeswoman for the Council of Ministers.

Mayor Mahamudo Amurane was shot dead at his residence in Nampula on October 4, a little more a year before the next municipal elections, scheduled for October 10, 2018.

According to Mozambican law, a by-election is held in the case of permanent impediment of a mayor if there is still at least a year left before the next ballot – a scenario into which the situation in Nampula falls.

With the government’s decision, the next milestone in the process will be the National Elections Commission proposing a date for the vote. Last week, the CNE president said that the body was ready for a by-election in Nampula.

“Whenever circumstances require [a by-election], conditions are created to address all operational problems,” Abdul Carimo said.

On Monday, the acting mayor of the municipality of Nampula, Manuel Tocova, removed ten councillors and six administrative heads from their posts, despite the provincial public attorney saying that a provisional mayor has no powers to take such steps.

Mahamudo Amurane’s death provoked riots in Nampula municipality, where the victim was elected mayor as candidate for the Mozambique Democratic Movement (MDM), Mozambique’s third largest political party.

Following public disagreements with the leadership of the MDM, Amurane had announced his intention to leave the party and run for a second term next year, either as an independent or affiliated with another party.

Nampula police have announced that two people have been named suspects [arguidos*] in the wake of the murder.

*Arguido Arguido (male,) or arguida (female,), normally translated “named suspect” or “formal suspect”, is a status in Portuguese type legal systems, including those of Portugal, Angola and Mozambique. It is given to a person whom the authorities suspect may have committed an offence. This designation does not exist in certain other jurisdictions. In a criminal investigation, a person has to be declared an arguido prior to being arrested. Portuguese law makes a distinction between arguido and suspect.

Source: Lusa