Mozambique set for watershed elections

MAPUTO, Mozambique

About 17 million registered voters will go to the polls in Mozambique on Wednesday to elect a new head of state and 250 members of parliament in what is billed as a “youth-led’’ election.

The incumbent President Filipe Nyusi will step down in January next year at the end of his second five-year term.

He is barred by the constitution to extend his tenure of office.

The elections will open a new era of politics in the country where a new breed of politicians is stepping in, replacing an old guard of the pre-independence era, according to analysts.

Presidential contenders

According to the National Election Commission (CNE), more than 36 political parties are participating at different levels of the elections.

Four presidential candidates have been approved to contest in the presidential election by the Constitutional Council which is the highest body that deals with constitutional and electoral matters in Mozambique. Ruling party, Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO), presidential candidate Daniel Chapo is expected to face a stiff challenge from independent candidate Venancio Mondlane. The other two candidates are Ossufo Momade of the former rebel movement Renamo and Lutero Simango of the Mozambique Democratic Movement (MDC).

With Frelimo having won all the elections since independence in 1975, the 47-year-old Chapo, the current governor of the Inhambane Province, is tipped to romp to victory and would likely become independent Mozambique’s fifth president after Samora Machel, Joaquim Chissano, Armando Guebuza and Nuysi.

But Charles Mangwiyo, a political analyst in the capital Maputo told Anadolu on Tuesday that the elections were “too close to call.”

“It’s very hard to predict the winner of these elections. All candidates have been drawing huge crowds and their messages to the electorate have been very compelling. We just have to wait for the final results,” said Mangwiyo.

Key issues: Insurgency in gas-rich north

Some key issues dominating the elections include insurgency in the northern gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado, where over 1.3 million people have been forced to flee for safety due to the insurgency and millions of others are facing severe food shortages.

The country has been fighting insurgency in the Northern Province since 2007.

Corruption

Mozambicans have seen stagnant levels of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita over the past decade despite bountiful resource revenues. The economy has been hampered by persistent high-level corruption, including the so-called “tuna bond” scandal. Money lent to state-run firms for fishing projects was allegedly plundered and Mozambique ended with $2 billion “high in debt”.

Drought and food shortages

Mozambicans go to the polls as the country faces severe drought exacerbated by El-Nino-induced weather conditions. According to the World Food Programme (WFP), about 1.3 million people are facing severe food shortages.

Unemployment and poverty

Despite its rich mineral wealth, the country is experiencing mass unemployment, particularly among its youthful population.

Most analysts agree that the biggest challenge for the new president will be creating economic opportunities and jobs in a country where about 62% of its population lives in extreme poverty, according to the World Bank.

Former broadcaster and law lecturer, Chapo, has been telling rallies that “peace will allow Cabo Delgado to rebuild infrastructure.”

Opposition party candidates have also weighed in on the conflict in Cabo Delgado, offering their own perspectives on a potential solution that in part focuses on addressing the underlying drivers of the insurgency such as poor economic opportunities and political alienation.

The country’s electoral body will announce results after 15 days.