Mozambican opposition leader Venâncio Mondlane, who fled the country after the October 9 disputed elections, returned to Maputo on Thursday on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha.
Upon his arrival in Maputo International Airport, access was restricted, with only passengers on scheduled flights being allowed in.
Groups of supporters braved the rains and gathered in the neighbourhoods, but police used teargas to disperse them.
With a Bible in his hands he said, “I, Venâncio Mondlane … swear to serve the Mozambican fatherland for the benefit of the people.”
Mr Mondlane maintained that the elections result was contrived and vowed not to recognise it, insisting that he was the winner.
The Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo)candidate Daniel Chapo, whom the electoral body and the highest court in the land declared president-elect, will be sworn in on January 15.
On December 23, 2024, the Constitutional Council confirmed Mr Chapo’s win, with 65.17 percent of the votes. Mr Mondlane, who is supported by Podemos party, rejected the results, which gave him 24.19 percent
He claims he won the election and has led protests even from exile since October. The presidential candidate, who previously said had received death threats both in Mozambique and South Africa, fled after two close associates were killed on October 19.
Promising a new era for the country, he said he returned the country to debunk the narrative that dialogue could not happen because “Mondalne was not in the country.”
“I am here to tell you that if you want to discuss, I'm here,” he said.
After almost three months in exile, Mr Mondlane, also known as VM7, said he had returned because he “realised that there is genocide going on.”
“I'm willing to stand up for justice”, he said. “I want to be there, in good times and bad times, to present my ideas, regardless of the risks, and I will go all the way.”
Angolan opposition parties, in a two-page letter released Wednesday to Maputo, called on outgoing president Filipe Nyusi to “commit himself institutionally and personally to protecting Venâncio Mondlane.”
The United Patriotic Front (FPU), a platform made up of the Angolan parties such as Unita and Democratic Bloc and PRA-JÁ Servir Angola, also expressed their concern about a protests planned for January 13, whose consequences “would further aggravate the very difficult situation in Mozambique.”
Decide Electoral Platform, a local NGO, says that in the post-election violence since October 21, at least 277 people have been killed and 586 others suffered gunshot wounds.
Pundits say Mr Mondlane has many things stacked up against him in his power quest. On Wednesday the Portuguse Jornal de Negócios newspaper said he has three disadvantages: No support from the military; he has yet to be endorsed by the international community; and his own party is divided.
Mr Mondlane has accused the Podemos president Albino Forquilha of violating their pre-election agreement, insisting that the swearing in of their MPs would be a “betrayal.”
But on Wednesday Mr Forquilha reiterated that the party’s 43 MPs would be sworn in on January 13, making them the official opposition in parliament.
“I don't see any betrayal of Venâncio Mondlane... Mondlane fights for the people and Podemos fights for the people. We don't fight for Venâncio Mondlane, we fight for the people and we have the same goal,’ the Podemos leader said.