Listen: ‘Renamo Military Junta’ denounces plan to attack them and threatens to make elections impossible

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Listen: ‘Renamo Military Junta’ denounces plan to attack them and threatens to make elections impossible

4:16 CAT | 30 Aug 2019

FILE: Renamo guerrillas opposing Ossufo Momade. [File photo: Voa Portugues]

The self-proclaimed Renamo Military Junta (JMR) again complained on Thursday of a military plan by state troops to attack its bases in Gorongosa, in the Mozambican province of Sofala, and threatened in response to sabotage the election campaign which starts tomorrow.

Mariano Nhongo, who was last week elected Renamo interim president and leader of the Renamo Military Junta, said yesterday that contingents of defence and security forces were being deployed to attack the group.

“We already have information from all districts that, yesterday (Wednesday) and the day before yesterday (Tuesday), Rapid Intervention Unit personnel were preparing to ‘devour’ Renamo men. But I am appealing to the Mozambican people, [saying that] any district which accepts this mistake of Ossufo (Momade), which accepts this mistake by (Filipe) Nyusi: that district will have a bad time with Renamo soldiers,” Nhongo said.

“We have information that there is a plan to kill all the guerrillas who fought during the 16 years (civil war), because those are the ones [the guerrillas] who kept the guns,” Nhongo added.

In a telephone interview, Nhongo threatened that any implementation of such a plan would force the group to sabotage the October 15 vote. “There will be no elections this year.”

VOA tried without success to secure a comment from the Mozambican police spokesman in Sofala.

Since June, the Renamo Military Junta has challenged Ossufo Momade’s leadership, and says it intends to revisit decisions made about the demobilisation, disarmament and social reintegration process for residual Renamo combatants.

The group leader said several guerrillas, who presented themselves for demobilisation, returned to their bases after plans for their cantonment in the Gorongosa mountains failed to materialise.

By André Baptista

Source: Voa Portugues