The Secretary-General of Mozambique’s Association of Veterans of the National Liberation Struggle (ACLLN), Fernando Faustino, has acknowledged that the succession process in the ruling Frelimo party is quite complex, but he added that work is being undertaken aimed at finding someone who, in his own words, “is capable of leading this country”.
Mozambicans and Frelimo members and sympathisers have for a while been waiting for the party to vote on its own presidential candidate for the October 2024 general and presidential elections – at issue is the succession of the current Mozambican and Frelimo president, Filipe Nyusi, who is expected to step down in January 2025, barring any surprises.
Meanwhile, Frelimo has tabled its Central Committee meeting for 5-6 April. However, the agenda made public does not include any debate on the succession. “As far as I know, the Central Committee will meet on 5 and 6 April and it already has an agenda for the meeting. And from what I know, the question of succession or presidential candidates is not included,” said Faustino, adding that the party’s presidential nominee should be “a person who embraces Mozambique, who has the country’s development in their sights, a person who is sure that we want to get out of the difficult situation we are in.”
Despite the complex process, Faustino seems to be in no doubt over Frelimo’s ability to unite around a common objective of finding someone who has the competences and qualities demanded by the current political moment.
“Frelimo has its own calendar; we’re just following it. Now, Frelimo must organize itself since this is no easy feat. Frelimo has to organise itself better so that we actually have a candidate who satisfies the wishes of Mozambicans. It is just not anyone. It has to be a capable person. We’ve several cadres within the party; we’ll have to find someone who’s capable of leading the country,” he said.
Comment
Fernando Faustino is doubly interested in the succession debate: first, because his name has been thrown around as a presidential candidate; and second, because he is linked to the same group that bear the responsibility for the chaotic state of the party and country.
Furthermore, Faustino should stop waffling about what competences the candidate should have, and advocate for a vote so that the country can react to the signal, and for Frelimo, in case of another casting mistake, to correct the course while there is still time to do so and to enable the comrades to “coalesce around the candidate and their objectives”, so as to compete and win the elections fair and square.
Reading between the lines, it may seem that Frelimo’s Political Commission has already decided on a profile without consulting wider within the party, at least within the Central Committee. This points to the state of disarray the party is in, which discredits the Political Commission itself as an important body in the party – the Political Commission is Frelimo’s most important body that runs the party between the sessions of its Central Committee.
With the Political Commission staying mum on the succession debate, Frelimo sinks to levels never seen before, as the political crisis grow. Observers consulted by Mozambique Insights are asking what is happening, and what is the fear of debating succession and who is afraid of it.
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