In a shocking turn of events‚ gunmen shot and killed two members of Mozambiques new opposition party‚ Podemos in Maputo. The attack happened a few days ago as the victims were driving through the Bairro Da Coop area of the capital city.
The incident occurred just before a planned nationwide strike‚ set to take place tomorrow. This protest is in response to the provisional election results‚ which suggest a likely victory for Frelimo the party thats been in power for about half a century.
Venancio Mondlane‚ Podemos presidential candidate‚ has rejected these results. The party is calling for a country-wide strike to express their dissatisfaction with the outcome.
The victims of the attack were identified as Elvino Dias‚ a lawyer for Podemos and Paulo Guambe‚ a party representative. Adriano Nuvunga‚ who heads the Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Mozambique‚ described the incident as a “cold-blooded murder“ stating that “around 10 to 15 bullets were shot‚ and they died instantly“.
Western observers have raised doubts about the elections credibility‚ citing issues such as:
- Vote buying
- Intimidation
- Inflated voter rolls in Frelimo strongholds
- Lack of transparency in vote counting
These problems have been a recurring theme in most polls since Frelimo introduced democracy about 30 years ago.
The final election results are expected to be announced in a few days. However‚ there are growing fears that tomorrows protest could turn violent. In the past‚ Mozambiques security forces have been known to use force against political demonstrators – a concern thats particularly relevant given last years events during local elections