Africa-Press – Mozambique. The former largest opposition force in Mozambique is not having the best of days. In addition to having already lost credibility with the people, it is experiencing internal unease that is growing every day. Examples include the siege that former party guerrillas laid on the party’s headquarters in Maputo last week to demand the immediate departure of Ossufo Momade from the leadership, and the threats of violence and a siege of the leader’s house.
In addition, Renamo is said to have published a statement on one of its Facebook pages denouncing “those responsible for the destabilisation of Renamo at all costs”. Muchanga, Magumisse and Muchacuare are among those accused, but it is Elias Dhlakama, brother of the late leader Afonso, who is said to be the leader of the movement to overthrow Ossufo Momade. However, the statement was quickly removed from the page.
However, the party denies beingthe author of the statement. DW interviewed spokesman Marcial Macome about Renamo’s growing problems.
DW: Recently, Fernando Mazanga, a member of Renamo, said in an interview with a Mozambican channel that Ossufo Momade was not in good health. Does Renamo confirm this?
Marcial Macome (MM): I can’t confirm this, I don’t know. As far as I know, the leader of Renamo is in good health, so much so that on Thursday (15-05) he was working in the office, meeting party members and members of the political committee. I think the meeting ended around two in the morning. So, regarding this issue of illness, whether there is any or not, I think it is a matter of private life and institutionally it is not our place to issue an opinion on this. The private life of the party president is his own business, and if he wants to, he can speak out on this matter. As a party, we do not speak out on private life, but rather on the public life of the institution.
DW: Even if the leader’s health condition affected Renamo’s party life, wouldn’t they also speak out?
MM: That being the case, the party has bodies, the bodies would meet to deliberate on this matter and we would have a statement on this. At this time, the bodies have not met because this information is not a party matter, if it is true. What Vice-President Mazanga said, if it is true, is a matter that he probably has this information about, I don’t know how. It is a matter that he may or may not have spoken about as a friend, so we cannot comment on one person’s opinion. Institutionally, we will not comment on this; what we will comment on is the institution’s action itself.
DW: Renamo is showing signs of being on the verge of collapse, for example, with internal demonstrations by former guerrillas who surrounded Renamo headquarters in Maputo demanding the resignation of the party leader. How are you managing this crisis?
MM: If Renamo is in disarray, you should remember that Renamo is considered the father of democracy in Mozambique. Now, if democracy in the world is in crisis, it means that the fathers of democracy may also be in crisis. At some point we witnessed situations similar to the invasion of the US Capitol, but that didn’t stop the US from being the US. What is at stake here is not what was done, what is at stake is how to resolve these situations, how to get out of them. As you may know, in political science theory, the crisis of democracy is not a problem for Renamo, it is a problem for the world. Democracies are in crisis in themselves and need to reinvent themselves. It is within this context that Renamo, as a defender of democracy in Mozambique, probably needs to reinvent itself in order to bring together all the strata that are part of this new situation of democracy worldwide.
DW: For many members of Renamo the solution to this crisis necessarily involves Ossufo Momade’s removal from power. Has Momade already shown a willingness to do so in the name of Renamo’s health and well-being?
MM: This issue of whether or not Ossufo Momade should leave could be discussed within the party’s bodies, it is not up to individual will. If it were up to individual will, you would have noticed that right after Donald Trump was elected, there was a movement for him to leave, and this happens in all democracies. And I don’t know if it is the right solution or not, but it is one of the solutions proposed by these guys. It could be discussed, like all issues related to Renamo, because there are those who see the problem exclusively as a leadership problem, but if we remember, leadership achieves its results according to the actions of its collaborators. So, we need to delve into the problem not frivolously, but in depth to understand what can be done and not extreme measures. We are among those who believe that extremes in democracies lead to the worst. So, we need to find a middle ground that allows us to find common ground to overcome this situation.
DW: And what is Renamo doing to overcome this situation?
MM: We are working with all the internal and external forces to overcome the situation.
DW: Your national council has been postponed indefinitely. This would be the ideal context to resolve the misunderstandings within Renamo. Why is it being postponed?
MM: We were working on organizing the national council just last week. And the political committee will meet soon and will decide on the date and place of the national council.
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