RENAMO authorises Dhlakama to set up “caretaker government”

The results, as announced by the National Elections Commission (CNE), on 30 October, were that the candidate of the ruling Frelimo Party, Filipe Nyusi, won the presidential election, with 57 per cent of the vote. Dhlakama came second with 36.6 per cent.

In the parliamentary election, Frelimo won 56 per cent, and Renamo 32.5 per cent. This gives Frelimo an overall parliamentary majority with 144 seats to 89 for Renamo and 17 for the Mozambique Democratic Movement (MDM).

But these results are not yet definitive – they still have to be validated and proclaimed by the Constitutional Council, the country’s highest body in matters of constitutional and electoral law. The Council, which only has seven judges, first had to deal with appeals lodged by the various parties, which took up most of November. Hopes that the Council would give its ruling on the elections before Xmas have been dashed, and it now seems probable that the decision will only be announced between Xmas and New Year.

But, according to a report in Tuesday’s issue of the independent newsheet “Mediafax”, the Renamo Political Commission, meeting on Sunday and Monday in the central town of Gorongosa, does not care what decision the Constitutional Council takes, and will declare its “caretaker government” anyway.

Dhlakama has not been consistent in his use of this term – at one point earlier this month he discarded it altogether, only to reinstate it two days later. Even in his opening speech to the Gorongosa meeting, Dhlakama preferred to speak of an “alternate government”, rather than a caretaker government.

However, judging by the final declaration from the meeting delivered by its spokesperson, Jose Manyeigas, Renamo has now opted definitively for the “caretaker government” formulation. This would be a coalition between Renamo, Frelimo “and other forces”. However, both Frelimo and the MDM have categorically rejected the idea.

“Renamo won the elections”, claimed Manteigas, flying in the face of the evidence not only of the official results, but of the parallel count undertaken by the Electoral Observatory, the largest and most credible group of Mozambican election observers.

“Regardless of the results which the Constitutional Council may proclaim, we shall create a caretaker government to avoid instability in the country”, declared Manteigas. He did not explain how such a government could function without offices, without staff, and without money.

At the end of the meeting, Dhlakama pledged that he “will not betray” his followers, but urged them to keep calm, at least until after the festive season.

Addressing a rally later on Monday, Dhlakama said he would start his parallel government by appointing a Gorongosa district administrator, followed by heads of the administrative posts and the localities in the Gorongosa interior.

This is not the first time Dhlakama has made impossible claims. After the 2008 municipal elections, he threatened to set up parallel municipal administrations. But not one of these came into existence.

After the 2009 general elections, Dhlakama promised to hold demonstrations against the results all over the country. But not a single Renamo demonstration was held.