Frelimo “is concentrating on its own agenda”

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Frelimo “is concentrating on its own agenda”

8:02 CAT | 31 Aug 2018

Photo: Frelimo Moçambique / Facebook

The general secretary of Mozambique’s ruling Frelimo Party, Roque Silva, declared on Thursday, in the northern city of Nampula, that Frelimo is concentrating on its own agenda, and not on attacks made by other parties.

He was responding to questions about the accusations made by the coordinator of the former rebel movement Renamo, Ossufo Momade, that Frelimo is intimating and working to disqualify Renamo candidates for the forthcoming municipal elections.

“We are concentrating on our own agenda which is working to win the municipal elections”, said Silva. “Our agenda is to work with our party’s grass roots and not to disqualify other players in order to win the championship”.

He was speaking to reporters at the end of a four day working visit to Nampula province, and said he was pleased at the work under way in the various Nampula municipalities in preparation for the elections, scheduled for 10 October.

Roque Silva stressed the need for all citizens to participate in the elections and thus reduce the high levels of abstention that have characterised Mozambican municipal elections in the past. “This is work that should be done by society and by all political parties to convince voters of the importance of their vote”, he said.

He was optimistic that Frelimo will win in all seven Nampula municipalities. “We are profoundly confident that, with the work being done, and with the level of acceptance of our message, we can obtain the results we want”, said Silva.

But in the largest municipality in the province, Nampula city, Frelimo lost the mayoral by-election held earlier this year. The Renamo candidate, Paulo Vahanle, became mayor, beating the Frelimo candidate, Amisse Cololo, by 58.6 to 41.4 per cent.

Cololo is standing again in October, but overturning Vahanle’s substantial majority will be no easy task.

Source: AIM