Rift widening between Mayor of Nampula and MDM – AIM report

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Rift widening between Mayor of Nampula and MDM – AIM report

8:25 CAT | 21 Feb 2017

Voa (File photo) / Amurane worked with the Nampula branch of the Central Office for the Fight against Corruption (GCCC) to root out corruption in the Nampula Municipal Council. Seven people were arrested including the city councilor for finance, and four others went into hiding.

The rift between the Mayor of the northern city of Nampula, Mahamudo Amurane, and his political party, the opposition Mozambique Democratic Movement (MDM), appears to be widening, reports Monday’s issue of the independent newssheet “Mediafax”.

Although a meeting of the MDM Political Commission, of which he is a member, is currently under way in Nampula, Amurane did not show up on the first day of the meeting, Sunday, and did not even send his apologies.

Amurane’s anger concerns alleged involvement of MDM members in corrupt practices. Earlier this month he accused unnamed figures in the MDM of attempting to denigrate him “because I will not do deals with corruption”.

Amurane worked with the Nampula branch of the Central Office for the Fight against Corruption (GCCC) to root out corruption in the Nampula Municipal Council. Seven people were arrested including the city councilor for finance, and four others went into hiding. Relatives of those arrested, claiming to be MDM members, alleged that Amurane was using municipal council money to buy a house in Portugal – an accusation that Amurane had no difficulty in disproving.

The spokesperson for the MDM parliamentary group, Fernando Bismarque, confirmed to “Mediafax” that Amurane had missed the first day of the Political Commission meeting. He found his absence strange, since the meeting had been scheduled months in advance. The meeting is discussing the agenda for the MDM’s second congress, due to be held in December.

Statements by another parliamentarian, and a senior MDM member, Geraldo de Carvalho, were considerably harsher. He told reporters that Amurane was behaving “childishly” and had shown disrespect to the party.

It remains possible that Amurane will appear at the meeting on Monday, but no-one is counting on that. So far, the MDM’s leader, and mayor of Beira, Daviz Simango, has not commented on the rift.

There is now some speculation that Amurane might run for a second term as mayor as an independent, or that he will switch his allegiance from the MDM for another party, perhaps the rebel movement Renamo.

Source: AIM