The contest to be Renamo presidential candidate and control $1mn per year has started
The battle to be head of Renamo and its presidential candidate suddenly became open Thursday (4 January) when party spokesman José Manteigas declared that the current party president “Ossufo Momade is our candidate and the president who is bringing success to the party.” But the younger generation wants more dynamic leadership and say that the Presidential candidate must be selected at a Renamo congress which should be held this month. The battle is over campaigning style and over control of $1mn per year in government money that goes to the head of the second largest party. The three key figures are:
Ossufo Momade is almost 63 years old, born 30 January 1961 in Ilha de Moçambique. During the 1980s war he was kidnapped by Renamo and rose to become commander of the central provinces of Manica and Sofala. He was elected president in 2018 after the death of Afonso Dhlakama, and is last senior member from the war generation. His strengths include negotiating a peace accord with President Filipe Nyusi, which included demobilisation money and pensions for 5000 Renamo guerrillas. But he is also seen as a patriarch who was not a dynamic campaigner during the municipal elections.
Afonso Dhlakama had become a very effective campaigner, and the younger generation feels that one of their people will do better against a Frelimo candidate. The younger generation, more dynamic challengers do not have war links and appeal to a younger voters coming of age since the war.
Manuel de Araújo is 53 years old, born 11 October 1970, and mayor of Quelimane since 2011, re-elected last year.
Venâncio Mondlane is 50 year old, born 17 January 1974 in Lichinga, Niassa and was the candidate for mayor of Maputo who gained most votes but was not elected. He is also deputy head of the parliamentary bench.
Many of the votes for Renamo in the municipal election were anti-Frelimo, but Araújo and Mondlane both have substantial personal support and gained votes from disillusioned Frelimo supporters who still will not vote for someone linked to the war.
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Who will control $1mn per year?
The struggle to be President of Renamo is also about $1mn per year linked to the post of leader of the second most voted party. Dhlakama refused this money from 2015, considering it government bait to compromise him. But Momade accepted, and he and his office received $700,000 in 2021 and $1mn in 2022 from the Mozambique government. The most recent figures, for 2020, show $374,000 for staff wages and benefits,
The President’s Office does not have an administrative structure for careful management of so much money allocated for goods and services, which means it is a sum attributed to Ossufo Momade which he can use as he likes. What the law states is that working office of the Leader of the Party with the Second Largest Number of Seats in Parliament is supported by staff in his confidence, namely an advisor, a financial assistant, a private secretary, a driver and a messenger.
The financial assistant is responsible for drawing up and executing the budget allocated by the State, through s Special Management Implementation Unit (U.G.E.E), which depends on the National Directorate of Public Accounts.
In addition to the budget, Ossufo Momade receivess a state salary on the third highest salary category in the State structure, on a par with the Deputy Speaker of the Assembly of the Republic (parliament), the Deputy Attorney-General, and the Deputy President of the Supreme Court. This is currently about MT200,000 per month, or about $38,000 per year. He also has the right to state transport, a special security and protection regime, first class airline travel, and a diplomatic passport for himself, his spouse, and underage or disabled children. The leader of the second most voted party is entitled to a seat on the Council of State, with its respective privileges. (Excepts of the laws setting out these extras are in the Portuguese edition of this bulletin.)
Losing the presidency of Renamo means losing more than power. It means losing a range of benefits, and the management of millions of meticais allocated by the State to the office of the second largest party.
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CNE will propose 15 March for the start of voter registration
The proposal to postpone the start of voter registration until 15 March will be submitted by the CNE to the Council of Ministers next week. The election law forced the Council of Ministers to approve 1 February as the start, but that is the height of the rainy season. To get around this, 1 February had to be approved and will now be changed.
In addition, the Lexton-Artes Gráficas consortium will not be able to place the equipment on the ground by 1 February. Much of the equipment is produced in China and should arrive in cargo aircraft, but it cannot be produced and shipped in one month.
Also the Government has not yet paid for past consignments of registration and voting material, and is running up debts.
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