Maputo, 14 Oct (AIM) – Ossufo Ulane, a senior member of Mozambique’s main opposition party, Renamo, in the northern province of Nampula, has called on Ossufo Momade to resign as president of the party, following his disastrous showing in last Wednesday’s general elections.
Since Mozambique introduced multi-party elections in 1994, Renamo has always been the runner-up in presidential and parliamentary elections, losing only to the ruling Frelimo Party.
However, the results so far announced from Wednesday’s elections suggest that, for the first time, Renamo will lose its status as the country’s largest opposition party to Podemos (Optimistic Party for the Development of Mozambique), which backed the independent presidential candidate, Venancio Mondlane.
For this reason, Ulane told reporters on Friday that he would like to see Ossufo Momade resign as president of the party.
According to Ulane, Renamo needs to by remove Momade from the party’s leadership, in order to maintain credibility with the public.
“In order to maintain Renamo at national level, we have to invite our president, His Excellency General Ossufo Momade, to resign as president of the Renamo party. Resigning as president does not mean that he is worthless. On the contrary, he is worth more. We are responding to the consultation of the people and the will of the people, so that Renamo continues to be what it once was”, he said.
Ulane also called on Abiba Aba, the party’s provincial political delegate and candidate for governor of Nampula province, to resign.
“I’m asking her Excellency, the provincial political delegate of the Renamo party, to resign as delegate. The delegate’s resignation could contribute to the return of members who have left the party”, he said.
“I was part of a team to rescue members who had left the party, and everyone’s justification was the same: as long as your delegate is still there, we won’t come back”, he added.
For his turn, Marcial Macome, the Renamo national spokesperson, believes that Ulane’s statement does not express the collective opinion of Renamo members.
“Renamo members are free to say what they think”, he said. “But there are proper forums to express these ideas. I think he made it clear that he had no mandate to speak on behalf of Renamo. He was speaking in his own name”.
(AIM)
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