Maputo — Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi has compared the attacks on cholera treatment units to the Islamist terrorism in the northern province of Cabo Delgado.
A wave of disinformation about how cholera is spread led to the destruction last week of a health centre and a police post in Nametil, capital of Mogovolas district, in Nampula province,
"They burnt the cholera treatment centre', he said. "Just as the terrorists burnt the Mocimboa da Praia district hospital in 2017. What's the difference?'
Speaking on Saturday, at a graduation ceremony in the Samora Machel Military Academy in Nampula, Nyusi notes this was the third time that mobs had attacked the treatment centre in Nametil since the current cholera outbreak had begun.
He was careful to point out that this had nothing to do with the recent demonstrations against allegedly fraudulent election results. But comparisons could be drawn with the jihadist raids in Cabo Delgado.
"I don't know what kind of mentality this is', Nyusi said. "With a great deal of sacrifice, we built an operating theatre in the Mogovolas hospital. It's been vandalised. What's the difference between this and those who attacked Palma and destroyed laboratories' (he was referring to the major Islamist raid against the Cabo Delgado town of Palma in 2021).
"They also destroyed a police post', he added. "What's the difference between this and the attack on Diaca (in Mocimboa da Praia) in 2017? They killed a policeman. This modus operandi is terrorist'.
There have been repeated attacks against health units, mostly in the northern province, because of rumours that health professionals are spreading cholera, rather than curing it.
At the time of the attack, there were six patients in the treatment centre. They fled before they were declared cured, and the health staff do not know where they are.
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The staff at the Nametil health centre had also fled, and Nyusi admitted that it might be difficult to persuade anybody else to work there.
As for the fight against terrorism in Cabo Delgado, Nyusi said "This is not the final phase. Now begins a new and complex phase which is that of commanding troops on the ground, in the face of different threats'.
"As of today, the graduates are commanders', he declared. "A commander of the FADM (Mozambican Armed Forces) is a model of bravery, courage and determination, where discipline is fundamental'.
Nyusi believes that loyalty is fundamental to the success of the FADM's role. "It is also important for the democratic rule of law, for the Mozambican Constitution. It means unconditional obedience and the defense of every Mozambican and of sovereignty. Always put the defense of the interests of the Mozambican nation first, to the detriment of individual interests', he stressed.
