Africa-Press – Mozambique. The Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo) accused on Thursday the police of carrying out hundreds of arbitrary arrests and firing tear gas at party members in northern and central Mozambique.
At a press conference in Maputo today, the Renamo spokesman said that the episodes occurred on Wednesday, when police allegedly invaded the party’s premises in Nampula with the aim of rescuing a member of the corporation who was identified by Renamo, in plain clothes, at one of the party’s marches in that municipality.
“Once he had been neutralised and without clarifying the reasons for his infiltration, other officers stormed the premises of the provincial political delegation with tear gas and shots at Renamo members, in an affront to the principle of proportionality and the basic rules of a police force that claims to be republican and non-partisan,” said José Manteigas, accusing the authorities of having arrested “more than 200 party sympathisers”.
Lusa tried unsuccessfully to contact the general command of the Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM).
According to the main opposition party in Mozambique, the alleged arbitrary arrests of Renamo members were also recorded in the municipality of Maganja da Costa, in Zambézia province, in the centre of Mozambique.
“Once again, PRM agents demonstrated their cruel and despotic nature by throwing tear gas at defenceless citizens who were marching peacefully in that town, with the aim of preventing the exercise of the right to demonstrate,” added José Manteigas, who blamed the government and the President of the Republic, Filipe Nyusi, for the alleged crimes committed by the police.
“There are orders to harass the citizens of the Centre and North, and this will have its price. Frelimo [the ruling party] will pay for this (…) We call on all living forces to fight the attempts to enslave the Mozambican people (…) Renamo wants the electoral truth to be restored,” concluded José Manteigas.
The sixth local elections in Mozambique continue to be the target of harsh criticism from different opposition parties and civil society, who denounce “mega-fraud” in the ballot, especially the falsification of public notices, with some district court decisions recognising irregularities in the process.
The main opposition party has organised marches to contest the results of the 11 October elections, gathering thousands of people in different parts of the country to demand the “restoration of electoral truth” and has already filed several criminal cases, namely against the judges of the Constitutional Council and agents of the electoral process.
On 24 November, the Mozambican Constitutional Council proclaimed the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) as the winner of the 11 October local elections in 56 municipalities, against the previous 64 announced by the National Electoral Commission (CNE), with Renamo winning four, and ordered repeat elections in another four.
According to the CNE, the repeat elections, scheduled for Sunday, will cost 41 million meticais (595,000 euros) and will take place in 75 polling stations, including 18 in Nacala-Porto (Nampula province), three in Milange and 13 in Gurúè (Zambézia) and in all 41 polling stations in Marromeu (Sofala).
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