Maputo — The Mozambican government has claimed that the recent approval of a package of financial and other benefits granted to former heads of state is aimed at guaranteeing "dignity' of the presidents after their term in office.

The perks - which benefit former presidents Joaquim Chissano, Armando Guebuza, and Filipe Nyusi and their spouses - were approved by the Council of Ministers (cabinet) in a decree which came into effect in March. The decree increases the financial benefits of former presidents to 600,000 meticais a month (9,400 US dollars at the current exchange rate).

It also includes the provision of no fewer than eight vehicles plus support staff, as well as 30-day paid holidays with first-class airfare. The decree also grants security and medical care to the former presidents and their dependents.

The decree has generated strong controversy, with civil society organizations contesting its legality. The leader of the National Alliance for a Free and Autonomous Mozambique (Anamola), former presidential candidate Venancio Mondlane, called the decree illegal and unconstitutional, claiming that "Council of Ministers does not have the authority to legislate on this matter, as it is an exclusive prerogative of the parliament.'

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According to government spokesperson and Minister of Development Salim Valá, speaking to reporters on Tuesday, after a meeting of the Council of Ministers, these rights are enshrined in law "which means that current leaders or past leaders must have dignity.'

"What the Mozambican State did was establish norms, and the privileges it believes leaders who have left office deserve. They must maintain their dignity because they were Presidents who led the country and played an important role', he said.

There have always been privileges for former heads of state. But the new decree updated and codified them in a more detailed way.