Africa-Press – Mozambique. The president of the Supreme Court of Mozambique said today that there is no arrest warrant for Venâncio Mondlane, the presidential candidate who is leading, from abroad, the largest challenge to election results the country has ever seen.
“There is no arrest warrant in the Mozambican courts against engineer Venâncio Mondlane. This means that if he has just arrived in Mozambique, he is naturally a free citizen,” Adelino Muchanga told the media on the sidelines of an event held by the Attorney General’s Office in Maputo.
One of the lawsuits filed against the presidential candidate leading the protests that have stricken the country in recent months demands €1.5 million compensation for damage caused.
Adelino Muchanga clarified that an arrest warrant can only be issued by a court, reiterating that the proceedings against Mondlane are still in the preparatory investigation phase at the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The president of the Supreme Court added that even the order to freeze Mondlane’s bank accounts was subject to appeal, as long as the person concerned does so within the scope of the proceedings.
“Anyone who is interested in reacting against a court decision must do so within the proceedings. (…) If there is an order to freeze the accounts, the interested party must go to the proceedings and react within the proceedings. The courts do not persecute people,” he said.
Muchanga added that “the courts will not be obstacles to eventual social pacification”.
When asked about the actions of the police forces during the demonstrations, the president of the Supreme Court argued that the Constitution protects peaceful demonstrations, but the vandalism of public and private infrastructure is illegal, while however admitting that in some cases there may be “excesses” on the part of the justice bodies.
“The invasion of police stations and factories, roadblocks and borders are not peaceful demonstrations. (…) However, in the actions of the agencies, I cannot say that everything that happens is necessarily legal. In some cases, there may be excesses and situations that require investigation to hold those who exceed the limits of the powers granted to them by law accountable,” Muchanga declared.
The protests against the election results have brought chaos to the streets in several parts of the country, with at least 110 people dead and more than 300 injured as a result of clashes between police and protesters since October 21, according to an updated report by the Plataforma Eleitoral Decide NGO.
The results of the October 9 elections announced by the National Electoral Commission (CNE) gave victory to Frelimo candidate Daniel Chapo with 70.67% of the vote, but they still need to be validated by the Constitutional Council, the last instance of appeal in electoral disputes.
In one of his most recent broadcasts on Facebook, Mondlane promised to be in Maputo to take office as President of Mozambique on January 15, the date scheduled for the inauguration of the new head of state.
“The fifth elected President of the Republic of Mozambique, elected by the people, will take office on the 15th. Stay prepared,” Mondlane declared.
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