Maputo, Mozambique — A crucial moment is approaching as Mozambique’s Constitutional Council prepares to announce, on Monday, whether it will endorse the contentious outcomes of elections that have ignited a violent crisis throughout the nation.
The exiled opposition figure, Venancio Mondlane, has issued a dire warning: should the Constitutional Council validate the preliminary results which placed him in a distant second behind the Frelimo party’s candidate, he will catalyze a “popular uprising.” These elections, held on October 9, have become a flashpoint for unrest.
Lucia da Luz Ribeiro, the president of the Constitutional Council, is set to deliver “the proclamation of the definitive results” during a public hearing, a moment teeming with anticipation and trepidation, as articulated in a recent statement from the council.
Initial reports from the election commission allege that Mondlane garnered a mere 20% of the presidential vote, starkly contrasting with Daniel Chapo’s commanding 71% victory for Frelimo. Mondlane, however, vehemently disputes these figures, claiming he actually secured a significant 53% and labeling the results as a product of electoral manipulation. Observers from various international missions have corroborated concerns over irregularities permeating the electoral process.
The ramifications of these events have been devastating: political turbulence gripping the nation for over two months has reportedly resulted in at least 130 fatalities, as chronicled by the non-governmental organization Plataforma Decide.
Mondlane has ominously projected that, if the disputed results are confirmed, Mozambique will descend into an unprecedented wave of “chaos” and incite a “new popular uprising of a scale never seen.” Expressing fears for his own safety, the opposition leader has sought refuge abroad. Meanwhile, the Frelimo party, the long-standing governing body, has maintained its grip on power since the country’s liberation from Portuguese rule in 1975.
