Maputo, 9 Aug (AIM) – The leader of Renamo, the main opposition party in Mozambique, Ossufo Momade, believes that the conclusion of the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) process constitutes a proof that Mozambicans can solve their problems internally.
The DDR was concluded in June when the last military base of the Renamo militia was closed, in Gorongosa district, in the central province of Sofala. This brought the total number of former Renamo fighters demobilized since 2019 to 5,221.
According to Momade, who was speaking at the opening of a meeting in Maputo of the Renamo National Council, “The happy outcome was due to the confidence of Mozambicans, and of members of Renamo, in particular, who knew how to believe in the oath to do everything to fulfill in spirit and in letter the understandings reached by the late Renamo leader, Afonso Dhlakama”.
“Regarding the DDR, we can say with satisfaction that we have tangible results such as the end of the demobilization of our fighters, and the integration of over 100 of them into the ranks of the Mozambican Police (PRM)”, he added.
Momade expressed his concern about the terrorist attacks that, since October 2017, have been plaguing parts of the northern province of Cabo Delgado. He declared that the Defence and Security Forces must adopt feasible strategies to eliminate the enemy.
“We always call for the identification of the faces of terrorists in our country. Because it is questionable that in six years of murder and destruction, neither the Defense and Security Forces nor their Commander in Chief (i.e President Filipe Nyusi) are in a position to tell Mozambicans who these terrorists are, what they want and who their bosses are”, he added.
Momade declared that the meeting of the National Council aims to consolidate Renamo’s participation in the local elections on 11 October. He deplored the many irregularities which tainted the voter registration, held between 20 April and 3 June, including parallel registrations outside the legally defined locations, the detention of Renamo monitors, and manipulation of the Electoral Administration bodies by the ruling Frelimo Party.
Momade also attacked the government’s handling of the doctors’ strike declared by the Mozambican Medical Association (AMM), which has now been under way for 30 days.
He accused the government of “political arrogance and dictatorship”, and warned that it is a mistake to imagine that “serious problems can be solved through threats”. He claimed that in the health service those problems included lack of medicines and of equipment such as surgical gloves (although the Health Ministry has denied there are any such shortages) and low wages.
Momade claimed that the strike resulted from the government’s inability to enter into dialogue with the AMM.
The Renamo leader also claimed that the new single wage table (TSU) for the public administration has become “a real social scourge”, which was approved “for the sole purpose of deceiving the public sector staff”.
(AIM)
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