Instability should not deter military registration in Mozambique

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Instability should not deter military registration in Mozambique

4:22 CAT | 07 Jan 2021

FILE PHOTO - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: DW]

The Government believes that young people are willing to defend the country against the forces that threaten Mozambican sovereignty. Registration for military service was officially launched this Wednesday in Maputo.

The Recruitment Centre in the city of Maputo says that political-military instability in central Mozambique and the insurgency in the north of the country will not deter young people from joining the military, director Lola Paulino justifying this position with the number of young people who joined the military registration process in 2020.

According to the governmental entity, about 23,000 young people registered for the military last year, exceeding the 20,000 target set by the government. “We are sure that this year we will also surpass [our target], despite the situation in the country, Covid-19 and the situation also in Cabo Delgado. We have [everything] controlled and taken care of regarding our goals,” Lola Paulino says.

That the registration process is going ahead is due to the fact that the government has campaigned in the neighbourhoods so that young people could register, she adds. “This campaign did not start today – it started in October. We campaigned in all districts of the city of Maputo. They were informed; we worked with the neighbourhood secretaries, who are responsible for bringing young people of military age to register,” she explained.

Fearless and for the Security

Young people of military service age interviewed by DW Africa dismissing any fear of registration and said that everyone would have to face this process. “We believe that peace and security are paramount aspects for any nation that has a democratic state and that watches over all its citizens,” one of the interviewees said.

The Secretary of State for the city of Maputo, Sheila Santana Afonso, says that young people’s participation in the military registration process is based on the fact that they are aware of the defence needs of the country. “They promote and value the honour of the country that saw them be born and its wonderful people,” she stresses.

“In the Armed Forces, young people become individuals of substance and gain a spirit of fraternity, in addition to developing patriotic awareness. It also serves for the civic, cultural and professional valorization of citizens,” she concludes.

Source: Deutsche Wellle