General Elections 54 -18 September 2019
“If you mess up again as you did in 2018, a lot will stop,” Filipe Nyusi’s told the citizens of Cuamba, Niassa, today. In the 2018 local elections, Frelimo lost to Renamo in Cuamba, which was Nyusi’s first stop on his campaign in Niassa.
“I promised to asphalt the Cuamba-Lichinga road (EN8), which is already happening. Who
assures me that if Frelimo and I go out of power the works will be completed?”, Nyusi asked, according to the Mozambican Information Agency (AIM) today. But some will hear it as a threat that Cuamba will be punished if it votes for Renamo but Nyusi is re-elected nationally.
“It was a mistake to vote in the opposition,” he told the people who flocked to his rally. Traveling by helicopter, Nyusi went from Cuamba to Mecanhelas where he held a rally and
toured the local central market. He promised to build a hospital and maternity ward. His campaign continues tomorrow in Marupa.
Simango: ‘Our riches must serve Mozambicans first’
“The people cannot continue to suffer, living as foreigners in their own country. Our riches must serve Mozambicans first,” MDM presidential candidate Daviz Simango told a rally in
Mecanhelas, Niassa. “We have a lot of wood and our children sit on the floor in school. If we prepare that wood and make desks, our children will not sit on the floor and people will also have jobs.” He promised the local population that if MDM wins the elections, they can guarantee an equitable distribution of natural resources.
In contrast to the Nyusi helicopter, Simango drove the 300 km from Cuamba to Lichinga, and in speeches stressed the extreme poverty affecting the local population. He called for a new emphasis on agriculture.
War, attacks, & violence hit the headlines
Renamo dissident leader says attacks continue unless campaign stops
The two attacks on the road in Manica yesterday were by the self-proclaimed Renamo
Military Junta (JMR), its leader Mariano Nhongo told a press conference today. And he said the attacks will not stop until the election campaign is suspended.
“If the election campaign continues, shooting will not stop,” Nhongo told reporters in Beira by telephone. “If the government suspends the election campaign and postpones the elections, there will not be one more shot,” he added. Other demands include integrating Renamo fighters in the army, police, and secret service SISE.
“JMR is not the same the late Renamo president [Afonso Dhlakama], who was patient. Those who do not hear us will get shot, which can hit anyone, journalist, administrator, governor and others,” warned Nhongo.
The JRM leader said he had been contacted by an ambassador in Maputo during the peace negotiations. “We had warned this ambassador not to endorse the signing of agreement between [new Renamo leader] Ossufo Momade and the Government, notably those parts governing the disarmament and reintegration of Renamo residual forces.”
