- Analysts forecast continued protests after the investiture
- Hiring of marketing specialists is one of the main strategies to clean up Chapo’s image
By Ricardo Dias
Maputo (MOZTIMES) – Daniel Chapo takes office on Wednesday (15 January) as the fifth president of Mozambique, but nationally and internationally questions are being raised about the regularity and transparency of the elections of 9 October, in which he was elected President.
The first job of Chapo in the Presidency of the Republic will be to win the legitimacy which he does not have, due to the fraud that marked his election, and the following violence.
Recently, the Portuguese parliament passed a draft resolution recommending that the Lisbon government should not recognise the results of the Mozambican elections, Although the initiative came from minority parliamentary groups, the majority groups did not oppose it, but chose to abstain.
The international figures, who may or may not attend the investiture of Daniel Chapo, could be an indicator of how he is seen within the international community. The trend of many countries will be to send low ranking officials to the ceremony.
Chapo is aware of this lack of legitimacy. which is why he is investing in marketing in the attempt to create an image of an honest and tolerant politician, different from the outgoing President, Filipe Nyusi. The recent news that Chapo has hired the services of an American lobbyist, Unik Ernest , to help improve and legitimise his image internationally, is part of this strategy.
The team of the next Mozambican President also includes South African and Mozambican consultants who are working to improve Chapo’s domestic image.
Unik Ernest is a US businessman of Haitian origin based in Manhattan who operates in various business areas. His Linkedin account presents him as a cultural architect who has participated in the organisation of events such as the Super Bowl and the Football World Cup. He also has interests in hotels and night clubs. He says he has collaborated with celebrities such as Joaquin Phoenix, Jamie Foxx, Rihanna, and Spike Lee. He also says he has worked with brands such as Diesel, Nike and Valentino. In American the use of lobbyists is common. But the Frelimo Party usually distrusts outside actors who are not its traditional partners. This option of Daniel Chapo may indicate that he has a personal strategy to build up his image, outside of Frelimo.
In Mozambique, Chapo is using media consultancy services provided by people outside of Frelimo, showing an effort to build his own image. The recent meeting Chapo held with civil society leaders was organised outside of Frelimo.
Analysts believe that Daniel Chapo, elected in what are regarded as the most fraudulent elections ever held in Mozambique, and which plunged the country into its worst ever post-election conflict, is seeking legitimacy at domestic and international levels.
“When the demonstrations began, the Foreign Minister, Verónica Macamo, hurried to meet with foreign diplomats before speaking with Mozambicans. So perhaps the strategy is to find some people to help in this external front, while domestically they find other forces who were outside the system”, said Egídio Chaimite, in an interview with MOZTIMES.
Egídio Chaimite, a lecturer in political science at the Eduardo Mondlane University and a researcher in social sciences, believes that hiring outside actors derives from the understanding that change is needed.
“I think it’s a hiring out of the need for change in the way things are done”, he said. “Change is necessary, because things are not good, even internally. The way things are working is not ideal. It’s out of date. Perhaps from this perspective, they are looking at the possibility of bringing a breath of fresh air. The figures hired domestically were highly critical of the system”, added Chaimite.
He said previous Frelimo governments have had in their teams flatterers who obscured Mozambican reality, and so “it’s time to bring new ways of capturing and acting upon reality in order to provide more effective answers”, argued Egídio Chaimite. “The problem is that there is a series of bootlickers who throw a cloud over reality”.
Although Daniel Chapo was declared winner of the presidential election, his legitimacy is questioned by the unprecedented popularity of his main adversary, Venâncio Mondlane, who returned to the country last week and has already called a 3 day general strike which began on Monday.
Chaimite believes that the country will be plunged into further uncertainty because Venâncio Mondlane has legitimacy and has proved this on the streets since the elections of 9 October. To overcome the current situation, Daniel Chapo cannot ignore Venâncio Mondlane, the face of the opposition which has paralysed the country for more than two months.
“We have a highly volatile situation”, said Chaimite. “The solution in all disputes involves a sincere dialogue, which touches on the wounds without traps and without games. Everybody wants to win, but it is necessary to be frank and honest”.
For his part, Sérgio Chichava, lecturer in political science at the Eduardo Mondlane University, believes that the fact that Daniel Chapo publicised his meetings with Swiss and Portuguese diplomats days before his investiture cements the idea that Europe believes that FRELIMO has the best conditions for governing the country.
He expects Chapo to use this to present the idea that he enjoys legitimacy abroad.
“People know who they chose and who they want. The great sadness of our country is that people are told that the only way to attain power is through the vote and a democratic game. But afterwards everything is subverted. The winners are those who control the institutions and those who are able to subvert the rules of the game. What is happening in our country is very sad”, said Chichava.
Chichava does not know whether the team of Mozambican consultants will help Chapo govern better, but he is sure that his image will be cleaned up through work and not through advertising on social media
“The image is cleaned up with work. People may, with the passage of time, forget that he was not elected, that he was imposed, that he is a President in power by means of fraud”, said Chichava.
“People believe that the democratic game brings with it competition, and this could improve living conditions. But there is no democratic game, and everything is imposed as we are seeing”, added Chichava. Violence was the result “because there are those who want to hang on to power at all costs, and since this does not have popular legitimacy, all that remains is the legitimacy of force”.
Chichava believes that the protests will not end after 15 January, the date of the investiture of Daniel Chapo. Hence the need for serious dialogue, in order to bring a little tranquillity to the politicians, to the people who take decisions, so that they can work more or less calmly.
“Even if Venâncio Mondlane were to come to power, two or three years later he would run the risk of becoming unpopular because the problems are huge”, Chichava said. “People believe that, with Venâncio Mondlane in power, these problems will be solved rapidly. Bu this is a utopia because the country faces terrible, colossal and structural difficulties which will not be solved by waving a magic wand”. (RD)
