Mozambique: The silence of Nhongo worries Renamo leader – DW

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Mozambique: The silence of Nhongo worries Renamo leader – DW

3:52 CAT | 18 Aug 2021

File photo: DW

Even though there have been no attacks in central Mozambique, Ossufo Momade said this Tuesday (17 August) that it was not possible to know if Mariano Nhongo was planning something.

For several months now, there have been no armed attacks against civilian vehicles on the EN1 or EN6, or in more remote villages in the provinces of Sofala and Manica in central Mozambique.

This silence, following a wave of attacks that began in 2019 and which was attributed to the self-proclaimed Renamo Military Junta led by Mariano Nhongo, is worrying the president of Renamo.

Speaking to journalists on Tuesday (17 August) after a working visit to Sofala province, Ossufo Momade welcomed the silence of the weapons in the centre of the country, but said that he was also concerned that the leader of the dissident Renamo military junta remained incommunicado.

“There, where yesterday it did not happen, today it is already happening. There is circulation to Macorococho, to Gruja, there on the national road. This is a sign that he [Mariano Nhongo] is not near here, but not because I know where he is. I never had contact with him. It is very difficult to say if Mariano Nhongo is out of circulation. I would be lying if I said differently,” Momade explained.

Nhongoff.dw_.dw_ — *Mariano Nhongo, leader of the self-proclaimed Renamo Military Junta*

Momade went on to urge the Mozambican government to strengthen security at all levels. According to the Renamo leader, “the Government must continue to maintain security, as we do not know what he [Mariano Nhongo] is planning. The only people who know what he is planning are his collaborators”.

Payment of subsidies

In Sofala, Ossufo Momade promised to hold a meeting on Thursday (19 August) with the diplomatic corps to talk about the interruption of the payment of subsidies to demobilised Renamo personnel covered by the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) process. The Renamo leader recalled that, “when they were at the bases, the guerrillas were given promises, and we would like these promises to be fulfilled, and that is not what is happening”.

Still regarding those demobilised, Momade denounced the alleged persecution of former guerrillas demobilised in 1994 within the framework of the signing of the Rome General Peace Agreement.

“We find here a very negative scenario, because they use the name Nhongo to intimidate our cadres. They go to Macorococho, Gruja, claiming that the demobilised of 1994 are Nhongo collaborators, which is not true,” Momade told reporters.

The Renamo leader once again reiterated that his party stands for “good political coexistence”. “We want democracy, we want a country of peace and reconciliation,” he stressed.

The leader of Mozambique’s largest opposition party took the opportunity to invite elements of the Military Junta to return home and benefit from the DDR process.

“Historic day”

According to Ossufo Momade, nine more officers of the Renamo general staff officially joined the DDR process this Tuesday. “Today is a historic day for all of us, with the disarmament of nine general staff officers of the residual forces of Renamo,” he said.

Speaking to the press on the sidelines of the official DDR ceremony, some of these officials stated that their greatest desire was to return to civilian life and dedicate themselves to farming.

Timosse Maquenze, chief of staff of the Renamo guerrillas, was one of them. “I’m going home to open my ‘machamba’, to raise cattle, sheep and goats,” he said.

Lucas Sabão Ganhaguira, a colonel, also said that he wanted to take rebuild his civilian life after many years of military service. “I am re-entering the civilian life that I left a long time ago. My plan is to raise cattle,” he said.

The former guerrilla called on colleagues who have not yet joined the DDR process to follow his example.

Source: Deutsche Welle