Maputo, 4 Jun – Antonio Muchanga, a former parliamentary deputy for the opposition party Renamo, demands that those who had suspended his party membership be held legally accountable.
Muchanga had been suspended from Renamo membership for an indefinite period. However, he took the matter to court and he won the case. The City Law Court issued a ruling in favour of Muchanga, suspending the decision of the party’s Jurisdictional Council.
To that end, he submitted a declaratory action for condemnation against Renamo to the Maputo City Judicial Court, seeking the annulment of the disciplinary measure and compensation for the moral damages he claims to have suffered as a result of the decision.
According to Muchanga, speaking to reporters on Tuesday, after filing the lawsuit, those who suspended him must be held accountable and “I hope that justice is served.”
“We hope that this action will be reviewed by the court and that there will be appropriate accountability. If necessary, there should also be compensation for the moral damages caused to me, my family, my friends, and supporters”, he said.
Recently, during his visit to the central province of Zambezia, Muchanga insisted that party’s leader Ossufo Momade must resign immediately “because he is responsible for the internal crisis affecting the party.”
He explained that the decision taken by the party’s bodies sought to affect his reputation and his political career within Renamo, a party he has been a part of for over four decades.
Muchanga also said that the legal action represents a way of defending “his history within the party and the principles that have always guided his political activism.”
“I am fighting within the party to correct what I consider to be wrong. Change must begin at the top and extend to the base”, he said, adding that he does not intend to leave Renamo, despite disagreements with the current leadership.
Muchanga also said that he is not currently focused on a potential candidacy for Renamo leadership, and “my priority is to remove obstacles that hinder the normal functioning of the organization.”
Renamo was once the country’s main opposition party, but it has now been clearly overtaken by the National Alliance for a Free and Autonomous Mozambique (Anamola), led by former presidential candidate Venancio Mondlane.
(AIM)
SNN/zl/Am/
