Africa-Press – Angola. The President of the Republic, João Lourenço, guaranteed, this Monday, in Luanda, that the country’s political and military situation is stable.
When delivering the Message on the State of the Nation, on the occasion of the Solemn Opening Session of the 2023-2024 Parliamentary Year of the Fifth Legislature, he confirmed that there are no relevant threats capable of jeopardizing peace, territorial integrity, sovereignty and stability, public order and the normal functioning of constitutional bodies.
He highlighted that the Armed Forces remain solid and firm in fulfilling their main mission of defending the State, as well as the National Police in fulfilling the purpose of protecting citizens and ensuring public order and tranquility.
He recalled that the salary adjustment of military personnel was made by 61.53% for the basic salary and 38.47% for other remunerations.
Training
He said that the focus on training continues to be a permanent reality, with three thousand 126 military personnel having been trained in the period 2022/2023, 99% of which in the country, highlighting that within the framework of international cooperation, 887 scholarship holders are undergoing training abroad .
According to João Lourenço, the goal is to have an Armed Forces that are increasingly stronger and prepared for the challenges inherent to their nature, hence the continuation of the process of gradual resizing and the establishment of the number of necessary military personnel, among other priorities.
The commitment to improving infrastructure, he highlighted, constitutes an important challenge, with the new Soyo Naval Base having recently been inaugurated, in the province of Zaire, with a view to increasingly ensuring control and surveillance of the sea coast.
The Head of State also explained that the National Maritime Coordination and Surveillance Center is under construction in the province of Luanda and the Regional Maritime Coordination and Surveillance Centers in Lobito and Namibe.
He also highlighted, within the scope of strengthening the Navy, that the Executive will acquire patrol ships, corvettes, small boats, landing ships and C-295 aircraft for maritime surveillance operations.
On the other hand, within the scope of the program to improve the military health subsystem, he explained that the old Main Military Hospital is being requalified and construction work will begin on the new Military Hospital of Luanda and the Regional Military Hospitals of Cabinda, Huambo and Moxico, as well as the preparation of conditions to build the Regional Military Hospitals of Huíla and Uíge.
He also pointed out the need for continued appreciation and recognition of former combatants and veterans of the country, with the re-registration and proof of life process having been carried out, with 85 thousand 765 assisted out of the 162 thousand 300 planned, with 66 thousand 396 assisted persons being able to be included in the SIGFE , generating savings to enhance other benefits to the class.
Crime
In his message, lasting more than two hours, the President of the Republic said that the crime rate shows a downward trend, including violent crime, with the penitentiary system controlling a penal population of around 25 thousand inmates in 40 penitentiary establishments , 55% of which were convicted.
However, he recalled that, despite the investments made in recent years, there are ongoing challenges, namely the deficit in the number of employees, taking into account the country’s territorial extension and population density.
“We also need to continue investing in infrastructure and technical and logistical means specific to police activity in the most different areas”, he argued.
He added that the ongoing projects will help improve intervention capacity, focusing on the recruitment and training of more personnel for the National Police and for the different Executive Services of the Ministry of the Interior, in order to increase human capacity.
The construction of the Operational Logistics Center for Disaster Management, the Border Guard Police Posts in several locations, as well as the Rapid Reaction and Patrol Units of the National Police in the provinces of Lunda Norte and Lunda Sul, to improve the securing diamond reserve and exploration areas, in addition to other equipment for penitentiary and operational services.
The priorities, he assured, include continuous preventive intervention against crime and delinquency, strengthening the fight against illegal mining of diamonds and precious metals, the humanization of the penitentiary system, the reinforcement of the presence of security forces at the borders, as well as the preventing accidents on the roads that have claimed the lives of many Angolans.
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