The Democratic Alliance Coalition (CAD), backing Venâncio Mondlane for Mozambique’s presidency, announced plans on Tuesday for a “peaceful march” on Saturday. This protest is against a ruling preventing CAD from fielding parliamentary candidates in the October general elections, a decision they have already appealed to the Constitutional Council.
At a press conference in Maputo, CAD president Manecas Daniel stated, “If the Constitutional Council does not uphold the truth according to the law, it will unequivocally prove the dysfunction of the country’s legal system, indicating we are on the path to becoming a failed state.”
Should the council affirm the National Electoral Commission’s (CNE) decision, Daniel vowed to defer to the populace, acknowledging the high tensions and the potential for unrest.
“It’s up to the people to decide the best course of action,” said Daniel, expressing hope that the Constitutional Council will “restore legality and truth.”
The CAD leader called for a “peaceful national and international march” on Saturday, 27 July, at 2 p.m. to protest against the violation of the Mozambican people’s basic rights to elect and be elected, which the CNE violated.
The CNE excluded CAD from the 9 October general elections for not meeting legal requirements, announced on 18 July.
“The Democratic Alliance Coalition’s closed plurinominal lists of candidacies are rejected because they do not meet the legal requirements for submission, resulting in the nullity of their candidacy process,” said Paulo Cuinica, CNE spokesperson, during the reading of the consensus deliberation on the verification of received candidacies.
The CAD president stated that an appeal to annul this decision has been filed with the Constitutional Council, ensuring that the coalition meets all requirements and submitted the appeal within deadlines, having already passed the registration phase for the elections, respecting the approval of the candidate lists.
The CAD president accused the CNE of lying to the Mozambican people by claiming the coalition does not meet the requirements to run.
“It seeks at all costs to harm those it views as a threat,” he said.
He added, “The CNE is the cause of conflicts in Mozambique,” guaranteeing that since its foundation in 2018, the CAD “has participated in all elections under the same conditions.”
The CNE denied political motivations for rejecting CAD’s candidacy, insisting the decision was “purely technical.”
“This is a purely technical decision: it adheres to the law, and the law has not been followed by those who should comply,” stated CNE spokesman Paulo Cuinica.
This ruling prevents Mondlane, a former Renamo MP, from running for parliament but allows him to remain a presidential candidate.
“The rejection of CAD’s candidacy is related to the submission process. Between registration and the submission of candidacies, CAD only needed to notify the Ministry of Justice and publish it in the Official Gazette,” Cuinica clarified.
He referred to the coalition agreement that must be legally communicated to the Ministry of Justice, Constitutional, and Religious Affairs.
Cuinica pointed out that the legal requirements for a coalition application are stricter than for a political party, emphasizing that CAD’s legal mistakes were “essential and very important,” leading to their disqualification.
The presidential, legislative, and provincial elections are set for 9 October.