Mozambique: Supreme Court President sworn in for second term

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Mozambique: Supreme Court President sworn in for second term

8:28 CAT | 23 Jul 2019

Picture: Presidencia da Republica de Moçambique

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Tuesday swore Adelino Muchanga in for a second term of office as President of the Supreme Court.

At the ceremony, Nyusi urged the bodies of the administration of justice to take firm measures against those responsible for the terrorist attacks in parts of the northern province of Cabo Delgado.

“While there is noteworthy progress in the dialogue between the government and (the former rebel movement) Renamo, we are concerned at the armed attacks by criminals in Cabo Delgado”, said the President. “The competent bodies should hand down exemplary punishment for their criminal actions. So we urge the bodies of justice to act with rigour in holding responsible those who kill and maim other people”.

Nyusi also stressed the importance of ensuring that ordinary citizens have access to justice. “Access to justice and to law is indissolubly linked to knowledge”, he said. “It is my belief that access to justice is not limited to the mere legal possibility of people resorting to the courts. They should know their rights and should be instructed about the procedures to adopt. They should be educated to understand the meaning of the decisions taken by the courts”.

He challenged the courts and the other bodies of the administration of justice to improve their educational function by finding the space and mechanisms for continual communication with citizens, thus giving content to the constitutional right of access to justice.

Nyusi stressed that Muchanga’s second term of office is beginning as the country prepares for the presidential, parliamentary and provincial elections scheduled for 15 October. “While, on the one hand, this is a truly festive period in which citizens freely exercise their sovereignty, on the other, some violations of the law have been registered, which require intervention by the relevant authorities”, he said. “The courts are called upon to act with rigour and impartiality, thus guaranteeing compliance with the law”.

Muchanga told reporters that many of the challenges made by Nyusi are also envisaged in the current strategic plan of the Supreme Court. “They coincide with our vision, which is of an accessible, independent, honest, speedy and good quality system”, he said.

As for the impending elections, Muchanga claimed that the court system “is prepared to intervene impartially. A short while ago, we concluded the training and preparation of the district courts, which are the bodies that deal with electoral disputes in the first instance”.

Muchanga said there are still 24 districts (out of 154) which do not have courts, but he was optimistic that, within the next five years, all the districts will have functioning courts.

The terms of office of three other senior figures in the justice systems have expired: namely Attorney-General Beatriz Buchili, the President of the Administrative Tribunal, Machatine Munguambe, and the chairperson of the Constitutional Council, Hermenegildo Gamito. But they will remain in office until Nyusi finds replacements, or re-appoints them for a second term.

Source: AIM