"Those who organise elections, including the Technical Secretariat for Electoral Administration (STAE), the National Electoral Commission (CNE) and the Constitutional Council (CC), all manipulate the data. They use their power to manipulate people's minds," said Brazao Mazula on 1 October. "I was the first president of the CNE, and I expected that 30 years later, things would be much better than what we did in 1994. I realise that since 1999, things have been getting worse until today,’ he said. And he cited vote theft in the 2024 elections.

"The people who run the electoral process are not serious, they manipulate the process and decide who wins. Citizens are serious, they voted because they are serious, so why manipulate their votes? We must respect the citizens' votes," he said.

"The results can be announced in three days. The rest is manoeuvring, because the more days there are, the more manoeuvring is done," he pointed out. In the 2024 elections, he said, the CNE knew the process was not right, but nevertheless forwarded it to the CC, knowing in advance that it is not the role of the CC to count votes. This, according to Mazula, leads one to believe that the results are manipulated.

According to Mazula, the problem stems from the partyization of all state institutions. "The country is very partisan. We are afraid to act. When there is truth, we run away from the truth," he said. The solution, he argued, lies in a profound reform that goes beyond institutions. "It is necessary to depoliticise our minds and our thinking." (MediaFax 2 Oct, Savana 3 Oct)

Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines

Mazula was speaking in Maputo during the Conference on Electoral Democracy in Mozambique organised by the Institute for Multiparty Democracy (IMD) and the MASC Foundation.