Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi, speaking in his capacity as leader of the ruling Frelimo Party, on Thursday called for greater vigilance to face the renewed terrorist incursions in the northern province of Cabo Delgado.
In recent days the jihadist offensive has displaced a further 100,000 people, fleeing from the Cabo Delgado districts of Chiure and Macomia.
Speaking at the opening of an induction ceremony for mayors elected on the Frelimo ticket in the municipal elections of 11 October, Nyusi challenged the mayors and other senior Frelimo figures to establish conditions to ensure greater control and monitoring over who enters and who leaves the municipalities under jihadist threat.
This, he stressed, was the way to ensure that terrorism and other forms of organized crime do not have the room to spread across Mozambique.
Nyusi told his audience to “strengthen the mechanisms to control the movement of strangers in the neighbourhoods, of people who might be linked to financing terrorism and other organized crime”.
He was thinking of such crimes as drug trafficking and kidnapping. “The drugs factories are out there in the districts, and in your cities”, he said. “Sometimes the hideouts used by kidnappers are not far away”.
Only vigilance, he stressed, could help the defence and security forces carry out their task of controlling terrorism and stabilizing the country. Municipal leaders, he added, should be the first to identify signs of strange movements in the areas under their jurisdiction.
But they should also respect citizens’ right to information, which meant dealing appropriately with journalists, not only through spokespersons but also face-to-face.
Nyusi demanded that the mayors must implement the Frelimo manifesto on which they were elected. They must provide “good municipal governance” and “the continual improvement of living conditions”.
“Good governance is the primary condition for achieving the goals of prosperity and inclusion in the municipalities”, Nyusi stressed.
He warned that, as from the moment they were sworn into office, the mayors are the leaders not only of Frelimo militants, but of all citizens living in the municipalities.
Compliance with the promises made during last year’s municipal election campaign, added Nyusi, was an “essential factor” for guaranteeing Frelimo victories in the presidential, parliamentary and provincial elections scheduled for 9 October. All would depend on “creating prosperous and sustainable municipalities based on the inclusion of all municipal citizens in decision taking”.
The mayors, he added, should promote “competent and honest governance, free of corruption, providing good quality services and placing citizens at the centre of attention”.
Although the mayors were elected on the Frelimo ticket, Nyusi warned that Frelimo’s local party bodies must not interfere in municipal management. He called for a culture of accountability, and of “permanent contact with the municipal citizens”.
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