MBABANE: Mozambique’s top court has confirmed the governing party Frelimo’s victory in an October election which prompted massive protests by opposition groups who say the vote was rigged, Aljazeera reported.
It has been reported that, the Constitutional Council’s Monday ruling is likely to trigger further protests in the Southern African country of close to 35 million people which Frelimo has governed since independence from Portugal in 1975.
“Provisional results from the electoral commission, which has not commented on allegations of fraud, showed Frelimo’s Daniel Chapo won the presidency by a landslide while the party increased its majority in parliament. The Constitutional Council validated the results on Monday.
Western observers have said the election was not free and fair. Frelimo has in the past denied vote-rigging accusations.
The post-election period has seen the biggest protests against Frelimo in Mozambique’s history. At least 130 people have been killed in clashes with police, according to the civil society monitoring group, Plataforma Decide.The 47-year-old Chapo is likely to officially take over the presidency from Filipe Nysui whose second term ends on January 15. Chapo will be the country’s first president to be born after its independence”, reads the Aljazeera report.
Daniel Chapo, presidential candidate of the ruling Frelimo party, leaves with his wife Gueta Chapo after casting their vote during the general elections at Inhambane, in southern Mozambique on October 9, 2024 [Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters]