Mozambique: Fire in the GCCC prompts suspicions – DW

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Mozambique: Fire in the GCCC prompts suspicions – DW

1:26 CAT | 12 Jan 2021

FILE PHOTO - A fire broke out at the GCCC headquarters in Maputo. [File photo. DW]

A fire partially destroyed the IT area and other parts of the Central Office for Combating Corruption (GCCC) in Maputo on Sunday, giving rise to suspicions in some quarters of yet another “burning of the archives”.

According to the Mozambican press, an electrical short circuit was the cause of the incident. DW Africa tried persistently to contact the Attorney General’s Office (PGR), of which the Central Office for Combating Corruption (GCCC) is a subsidiary body, but received no response.

Some immediately suspected the incident was another archive-burning exercise. The director of the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), Adriano Nuvunga, is among them. “Yes, I have the same suspicion – that this is about burning archives, burning cases. There must be cases so that they can be followed up by trials,” he says.

“There are many cases at the GCCC concerning those in office, especially in the first term of President Filipe Nyusi. There are many powerful people in the current government with cases underway, who might be interested in seeing the GCCC burn down,” he added.

In truth, this would not be the first suspicious case. In 2007, flames partially destroyed the Ministry of Agriculture, which at the time ran the PROAGRI (Agrarian Development Program), a project that benefited from “fat” funds from international donors and which was highly criticised for its poor results. To this day, the result of the investigation into the fire is not known.

Regarding the fire at the GCCC, police spokesman Leonel Muchina said the police had not been notified of the incident. “We, as a police authority in the city of Maputo, have not been notified to watch any cases of fire in the GCCC and this notification was not submitted to the local National Public Salvation Service, at the level of Maputo city. Therefore, we cannot confirm the occurrence of a fire in that public institution,” he said.

Mistrust of authorities

Even if the police authorities had the case in hand, the credibility of the police is so low that citizens no longer trust it. Adriano Nuvunga’s lack of trust is based on previous instances.

“I do not believe that there will be a serious investigation into this process. In reality, it is necessary to be a little suspicious of everything. I have already seen a case in which entities set fire in collusion with people in charge of the process. This fire was started in broad daylight. How is that possible? The case would have to be investigated by another more independent and professional entity,” he said.

After the experience at the Ministry of Agriculture, have state institutions started to make backup copies of their files? The director of the CDD does not believe that the lesson has been learned.

“I don’t know if the GCCC would have backed up [its files]. Usually, the courts are not very organised in this area. The state does not have its files properly organised. This may have to do with the concern of the courts themselves to remain a weak link in the system. And it is true that the executive branch is not interested in better training, and neither are they interested in tackling organised crime,” Nuvunga says.

Source: Deutsche Welle