Africa-Press – Angola. UNITA, the main force in the Angolan opposition, begins the process of receiving and formalizing candidacies for the party presidency, a position that will be decided at the 14th extraordinary congress, scheduled for November 28-30, in Luanda.
The process officially opens the race for the leadership of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and everything indicates that the current president, Adalberto Costa Júnior, will be the main candidate to succeed him despite not yet having formalized this intention.
Applications must be submitted and validated by October 26, followed by a month of internal electoral campaign, between October 27 and November 26.
In 2019, the congress that elected Adalberto Costa Júnior registered four candidates: Alcides Sakala, then party spokesperson; Raúl Danda, vice-president (who died in 2021); Abílio Kamalata Numa, a retired general and historic figure in UNITA; and José Pedro Katchiungo, a former deputy, who later challenged internal deliberations and faced disciplinary proceedings.
So far, none of the potential contenders have publicly commented on a potential candidacy. Among the names being considered are former president Isaías Samakuva, who led UNITA for 16 years, and Rafael Massanga Savimbi, a member of parliament and Secretary for International Relations and Communities, son of the party’s founder, Jonas Savimbi, who was killed in combat on February 22, 2002.
Rafael Savimbi, 47, has played an active role in party diplomacy and liaising with Angolan communities abroad, and is also a member of the National Assembly’s Economy and Finance Committee.
The extraordinary congress takes place in a sensitive political context, after UNITA achieved the best result in its history in the 2022 general elections, with 43.95% of the votes and 90 deputies, against 51.17% of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA, in power since 1975).
The new president’s main challenge will be to consolidate the opposition and define the electoral strategy for the 2027 general elections, in a scenario of growing competition for urban and young voters.
Internally, UNITA faces challenges of political cohesion, marked by the convulsions of the United Patriotic Front (FPU) — an informal coalition that integrated PRA-JA Servir Angola, led by Abel Chivukuvuku, the Democratic Bloc and civil society, embodied by Francisco Viana.
The withdrawal of PRA-JA and the dissolution of small parties could weaken the opposition and place UNITA in the position of having to redefine its alliances to maintain its position as a unifying opposition force in the Angolan political landscape.
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