Constitutional Council rejects Marromeu appeal – Mozambique

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Constitutional Council rejects Marromeu appeal – Mozambique

5:39 CAT | 14 Dec 2018

In file CoM

Mozambique’s Constitutional Council, the highest body in matters of constitutional and electoral law, has rejected the appeals by the main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo, against the results of the re-run election held at eight polling stations in the municipality of Marromeu, in the central province of Sofala, on 22 November.

In the 10 October municipal elections, there was open fraud in Marromeu. In its ruling on the elections the Council found that “serious irregularities which called into question the freedom, justice and transparency of the elections” had occurred at eight polling stations.

Rioting had occurred in the polling centres during the count on the night of 10 October, during which four people were shot. From the ruling given by the Marromeu District Court and from police statements, the Council concluded that the rioting made it impossible for parties to present protests at the polling stations.

Renamo also claimed that, during the chaos, polling station chairpersons falsified results sheets, giving victory to the ruling Frelimo Party in places where, in reality, Renamo had the largest number of votes.

It was hoped that the rerun election would be much cleaner than the original – but this did not happen. Gross illegalities occurred in the full sight of observers and journalists

The law states that the count must begin immediately after the close of polls (at 18.00). But shortly after 20.00, the independent television station STV showed that the polling stations were almost deserted. The polling station chairpersons had decided they should eat something before starting the count. Although they claim to have agreed this with the political party representatives, it is a serious violation of the law, leading to obvious suspicions that something crooked was being planned.

At about 20.30 the polling station staff (MMVs) were back in position, and the count could begin. But the MMVs illegally expelled journalists and observers from the polling stations.

Faked results sheets were posted, which were on the station walls in the polling centre in the 25th June school for a short period before being removed. At the two polling stations in the Samora Machel school, no results at all were posted. At both schools the ballot papers and the other election materials were removed by the police. The final results sheets were illegally produced outside the polling stations, far away from the prying eyes of observers and opposition party monitors.

Despite the blatant illegalities, the Constitutional Council threw out the Renamo appeals. There were two of these – the first was from the Renamo Marromeu district delegate, Joao Meniquija, against the ruling by the Marromeu District Court which upheld the results, and the second was an appeal in Maputo, against the decision by the National Elections Commission (CNE) to accept the faked results.

The District Court had rejected Renamo’s initial appeal because Renamo did not include documentary evidence such as the results sheets. Renamo’s retort to this is that the polling station chairpersons did not distribute any results sheets, but fled from the polling stations, accompanied by the police, and taking all the electoral materials with them.

Yet the Constitutional Council supported the Court’s decision, and claimed the Renamo appeal could not be considered because there had been no “prior objection” made at the polling stations or at the Marromeu District Elections Commission.

Renamo has repeatedly argued that it was impossible to lodge any objection when the polling station staff fled from the scene and did not allow opposition monitors to make any written complaints.

Renamo reported the various illegalities that had taken place to the Marromeu district police command. The Constitutional Council praised this – but it made no difference to the Council’s decision to reject the appeal.

As for the second appeal, the Council said Renamo’s arguments were not against the CNE’s declaration of the results, but against what had happened at the polling stations. This violated the principle that one phase of the electoral procedures cannot be used to appeal against an earlier stage. So that appeal was thrown out too.

The Council has not yet ruled on the rerun election itself, and so there remains a chance that it may submit to reality and declare the result null and void. Alternatively it could use its prerogative to demand a recount – something allowed under the electoral law, and perfectly possible if the original ballot papers still exist.

Source: AIM