Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Friday declared that it has become urgent to professionalise the armed forces (FADM), so that they can improve their performance and their ability to respond to threats.
“You don’t’ train a commando, you don’t train a marine, you don’t even train a member of the military police, let alone a pilot or a sailor in just two years”, said Nyusi at the end of a visit to the FADM General Staff Headquarters.
He said that the various specialisms in the army require special forces. It was thus urgent to establish a comparison with international practice to take a correct decision for Mozambique and to “professonalise our youth”.
Nyusi said it has become ever more apparent that two years is a very short time to train a professional soldier.
The period of two years was mentioned because, in general, that is how long conscripts stay in the FADM. Ever since 1997, the FADM has been formed on the basis of conscription, but Nyusi seemed to be suggesting that this model is now exhausted.
Earlier in the day, Nyusi visited the Maputo City Police Command, where he called for a larger, and a younger, police force, particularly to respond to environmental crimes.
Mozambique must not continue to be held hostage “by the criminals who are destroying our fauna and flora”, he said.
“We need many more police agents”, he said, “but the police need to be rejuvenated so that they can arrest those who steal our timber, our wild life, our ivory”.
Nyusi noted that the operations room in the city command is not fully operational. “Some of your activities are at a standstill for lack of maintenance, or for lack of specialist staff”, he said. “There’s no time to wait, we have to prepare for tomorrow”.
The President recognized that the police face a scarcity of funds and of material resources – nonetheless the police must work with what it has. “We want you to be able to react in accordance with reality”, he declared. “We cannot give ourselves the luxury of wasting time, or of jumping stages. Each stage must be built. That’s why we’re here”.
He called on the police to maintain an exemplary posture, so as not to stain the image of the country.
“There must be loyalty on your part”, Nyusi stressed. “You are our visiting card, in terms of organization, discipline, bearing and honesty”.
