Dozens of former Renamo guerrillas protested in Nampula, Mozambique, demanding the resignation of party leaders, including Ossufo Momade, following disappointing electoral results. Protesters expressed discontent with current leadership and a perceived lack of support for former combatants, indicating ongoing internal strife within the party. The protests are part of a broader movement to push for leadership changes and address grievances of rank-and-file members.
In Nampula, Mozambique, a group of former guerrillas from the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo) staged a protest by closing the party’s provincial delegation on Tuesday morning. This action is part of their ongoing campaign against the party’s current leadership, particularly targeting provincial delegate Abiba Aba and party president Ossufo Momade. One protester, Carolina Yahaia, expressed dissatisfaction with their leadership, asserting, “We don’t want provincial delegate Abiba Aba, she should leave and leave the delegation because she is very arrogant… She and our president Ossufo Momade should leave.”
The discontent stems from Renamo’s poor performance in the recent elections held on October 9, where the party secured only 28 parliamentary seats. This resulted in Renamo losing its status as the second-largest political force to the Optimistic People for the Development of Mozambique (Podemos), which achieved 43 seats. On February 26, Renamo delayed a crucial National Council meeting that had been scheduled for March 7 and 8, failing to provide a new date, further fueling concerns and dissatisfaction among party members.
The protest in Nampula is a continuation of demonstrations held across the country, where members have called for Ossufo Momade’s resignation. Former guerrilla Ernesto Douglas voiced concerns regarding the division within the party, stating that since Momade took over, members who aligned with the late Afonso Dhlakama have been marginalized. He remarked, “After the loss of our president Afonso Dhlakama, we are swallowing frogs; they deceived us into thinking that we would be demobilized in the Demilitarization, Disarmament and Reintegration (DDR) process.”
The former guerrillas expressed frustration that their attempts to communicate their grievances to party leadership have been unsuccessful. In response to the protest, provincial spokesperson Nelson Carvalho indicated that the closure of the delegation was a precautionary measure to prevent potential confrontations among members. Carvalho clarified, “When we became aware of this situation, we ended up locking our delegation… all to avoid confrontations between members.”
Ossufo Momade’s recent electoral performance was notably poor, receiving only 5.81% of the votes in the presidential elections, marking a significant decline for the party since the death of Afonso Dhlakama, its historical leader. Following the elections, Daniel Chapo of the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo) was inaugurated as the country’s fifth President on January 15. The ongoing tensions reflect a deeper historical fracture within Renamo, stemming from a long civil war that concluded with a peace agreement in 1992.
The recent protest by former Renamo guerrillas in Nampula underscores the internal strife within the party following poor electoral results. The dissatisfaction directed towards party leadership highlights the struggle for cohesion and the need for leadership accountability. With calls for Ossufo Momade’s resignation growing louder, the political landscape may shift significantly, prompting critical conversations about governance and representation in Mozambique.
Original Source: clubofmozambique.com
