– Frelimo secures an absolute majority in Parliament, extending its rule to beyond half a century.
– Elections marred by allegations of fraud spark fears of post-election violence
By MOZTIMES
Maputo (MOZTIMES) – The Constitutional Council has proclaimed Daniel Chapo as the elected President of Mozambique, largely confirming the preliminary results announced by the National Electoral Commission (CNE) two months ago, despite minor changes to the figures.
The ruling Frelimo Party was also declared the winner of the parliamentary elections, securing 171 of the 250 seats in the unicameral parliament.
“Irregularities did not influence the results of the elections,” claimed Lúcia Ribeiro, the presiding judge of the Constitutional Council, during the official validation ceremony held this Monday in the capital, Maputo.
The Constitutional Council slightly adjusted the preliminary results announced by the CNE, reducing the number of votes obtained by Daniel Chapo from 4.9 million to 4.4 million, corresponding to 65%. The number of parliamentary seats won by Frelimo was reduced from 195 to 171. These changes did not significantly impact the overall results.
With the final results declared on Monday, PODEMOS remains the second most-voted party, with 43 parliamentary seats, followed by RENAMO with 28 seats and the Mozambique Democratic Movement (MDM) with 8 seats.
With this victory, Frelimo extended its rule to over half a century. It has been in power since Mozambican independence in 1975.
Despite the proclamation of the results, the country remains in a post-election crisis that threatens to escalate.
The opposition’s presidential candidate, Venâncio Mondlane, has been leading a mass uprising against the election results for nearly two months. So far, the protests have resulted in at least 130 deaths, most of whom were shot by police using live ammunition, according to the DECIDE Platform, which monitors post-electoral conflict. Hundreds have been injured, and thousands have been detained.
Hours before the results were announced, Mondlane urged his supporters to paralyse the country in protest if the President of the Constitutional Council confirmed Frelimo’s victory and that of its candidate.
“It is necessary to mobilise the entire country, not just the major cities. The time is now. Resistance is on the streets, in the squares, and in the daily activities of the people. Now is the time to take a stand, to be smart, and to show that we will no longer accept oppression,” Mondlane said during a live broadcast on Facebook.
“The armed forces and security forces cannot continue to commit violence against the people under the pretext of defending ‘legality,’” he added.
The elections in Mozambique were described as fraudulent by various domestic and international observers, including the European Union Electoral Observation Mission in Mozambique, which reportedinstances of ballot box stuffing in at least seven provinces.
On Monday, the city of Maputo, the epicentre of protests against the election results, woke up deserted, with public and private services paralysed due to fears of violence. Police and military forces were deployed to protect strategic sites and infrastructure across the country. (MT)
