Maputo: Mozambique’s elections body and Constitutional Council have rejected a bid by Samora Machel Junior – son of the country’s first leader – to contest the upcoming municipal elections.
Machel Junior’s bid to stand as a mayoral candidate was first turned down by his Frelimo party.
He accepted to an invitation to from the Youth Association for the Development of Mozambique (AJUDEM) - a coalition of civil society bodies close to Frelimo - to stand as their candidate but without success.
The National Elections Council (NEC) threw out the AJUDEM list for the municipal elections, because it did not contain enough candidates. The decision was upheld by the Constitutional Council following AJUDEM’s appeal.
Each list for the Maputo Municipal Assembly must have enough names for all 64 seats in the Assembly, plus at least three supplementary candidates.
“Do not stay at home just because AJUDEM and Samora Machel Junior are not on the ballot paper,” Machel Junior told reporters at a press conference in Maputo.
“That would not be good for our democracy. We must all vote. We must all comply with the dictates of citizenship. Only by voting can we make a difference”.
Source: AIM and AllNetAfrica
