Coronavuirus: Frelimo postpones meeting, Assembly does not – AIM report

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Coronavuirus: Frelimo postpones meeting, Assembly does not – AIM report

3:25 CAT | 17 Mar 2020

in file CoM

The Political Commission of Mozambique’s ruling Frelimo Party has postponed the meeting of the Party’s Central Committee, that was initially scheduled to take place on 20-22 March, but the country’s parliament, the Assembly of the Republic is insisting that the next Assembly sitting will begin on 25 March

A statement from the Political Commission explained that it acted in response to the restrictive measures announced on Saturday night by President Filipe Nyusi in response to the pandemic of Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus first detected in December in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

One of these measures is a ban on all meetings which bring together 300 or more people. There are 189 members of the Central Committee, but once support staff (including caterers and cleaners), journalists and guests are included the total number present could well reach or exceed 300.

A statement from an extraordinary meeting of the Political Commission said that, in the light of the evolution of coronavirus pandemic, and the measures announced by Nyusi, it had decided to postpone the Central Committee meeting to a date to be announced later, “based on the highest interests of defending our greatest asset, which is life”.

The Political Commission also welcomed the preventive and restrictive measures taken by the government, which include cancelling government visits abroad, and imposing a 14 day period of obligatory quarantine for anybody arriving from a country where there is “active transmission of Covid-19”.

The Political Commission urged all Mozambicans “to observe, with the greatest rigour, the recommendations announced and adopt the hygiene practices recommended by the Health Ministry”.

However, the Assembly of the Republic is refusing to postpone its forthcoming sitting, due to start on 25 March.

There are 250 parliamentary deputies, and when invited guests, support staff, journalists, security and members of the public are added, the number of people at the sitting will easily exceed the limit of 300 mentioned by the President.

When, on Monday, AIM phoned a member of the Assembly staff, Filomena Grachane, director of the legislative process division of the parliamentary secretariat, she insisted that the sitting will begin as scheduled. AIM mentioned the 300 limit imposed by Nyusi, but Grachane insisted “there are only 250 deputies”, as if nobody else would be present.

Sports bodies are taking a more responsible attitude. The Mozambican Football Federation (FMF) has banned all games at which more than 300 people will attend. The FMF chairperson, Feizal Sidat, told reporters that provincial football championships will continue, but the number of people allowed to enter the stadiums will be limited to 300.

Sidat added that the traditional handshakes between the opposing sides and the referees have been temporarily abolished.

Games scheduled for closed environments, such as five-a-side football, are cancelled, he said, and no teams are allowed to play matches abroad without the prior authorisation of the Mozambican authorities.

The pandemic is also affecting religious ceremonies. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Maputo cancelled last Sunday’s “Via Sacra” (Stations of the Cross), since it would certainly attract more than 300 people.

The Mozambican Anglican Church has recommended that its followers accept the hygiene measures outlined by Nyusi. Anglican Bishop Carlos Matsinhe said that in any Anglican church that has running water, at least two wash basins will be made available so that believers can wash their hands. The Anglican church has also temporarily outlawed the standard forms of greeting, such as handshakes, kisses and embraces.

Source: AIM