By Sheila Nhancale
Maputo (MOZTIMES) – Mozambique’s Constitutional Council has rejected an appeal filed by opposition leader Venâncio Mondlane, who had requested an immediate decision on the registration of his political party, the National Alliance for a Free and Autonomous Mozambique (ANAMALALA).
A ruling from the country’s highest court, issued on Tuesday, stated that the legal deadline for processing the party’s registration has not yet expired, and that Mondlane must wait for a decision from the Ministry of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs, which is still reviewing the application.
The request to register ANAMALALA was initially submitted on 5 April 2025. Following a preliminary review, the Ministry of Justice notified the party’s proponents on 28 May to correct a number of formal irregularities, including the party name, the identification of founding members, and issues in the party statutes.
The corrected documents were resubmitted on 6 June. According to the Constitutional Council, this submission triggered a new 60-working-day deadline under Article 7 of the Law on Political Parties. That deadline will expire in early August.
“The 60-day period stipulated in Article 7 of the Law on Political Parties restarts from the date the revised application is submitted following notification to correct irregularities,” the Council’s ruling states.
In his appeal, Mondlane argued that the Ministry had exceeded the legal deadline for a response, invoking Law no. 14/2011, which governs general time limits for public administration and establishes that a lack of response within 25 working days constitutes tacit rejection.
However, the Constitutional Council dismissed this argument, affirming that the specific law governing political parties, which sets a 60-day response deadline, takes precedence over the general administrative law. Thus, the appeal was ruled unfounded.
Venâncio Mondlane was the second most-voted candidate in the 2024 presidential elections, securing 20% of the vote against 70% officially attributed to the incumbent Daniel Chapo. Mondlane has refused to recognise the results and led nationwide protests, which were violently repressed by police, leaving more than 380 people dead, around 1,000 injured, and over 7,000 arrested, more than half of whom remain in detention.
By creating his own political party, Mondlane aims to rally his supporters and run again in the 2029 presidential and parliamentary elections. (SN)
