Mozambican opposition leader warns of renewed election protests

(Bloomberg) — Venâncio Mondlane, the fiery opposition presidential candidate who came second in Mozambique’s Oct. 9 elections, warned of further protests against what he described as a fraudulent outcome.

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The former lawmaker last week called for three days of demonstrations that led to violent clashes with police and brought businesses to a standstill in much of Maputo, the capital. The first two phases of a four-part plan to ensure the will of voters is respected have been completed, and details of the next phase will be announced later on Monday, Mondlane said.

“From Tuesday there will be hard and very difficult days,” he said on Sunday in a message on his Facebook account, which he used to communicate with his supporters after announcing that he had gone into hiding after receiving information that he is being possibly murdered.

The unrest – which Adriano Nuvunga, director of the Center for Democracy and Human Rights, said was of an unprecedented scale – has sent Mozambique’s dollar bonds plummeting. It has also raised fears of further delays to a $20 billion liquefied natural gas project that TotalEnergies SE suspended in 2021 amid an Islamic State-backed insurgency.

Mondlane has spoken in his livestreams about the country being ripe for a revolution, which could rack up more than a million views in a matter of hours.

It is unclear whether he can maintain support for a prolonged work stoppage in a country where many rely on informal trade to survive. According to the World Bank, almost three out of four people live on less than $2.15 every day.

Mondlane received 20% support in the presidential election and ruling party candidate Daniel Chapo 71%, election authorities announced on October 24. A series of irregularities disrupted the counting process, with evidence of stuffing ballot boxes and altering the results, observers including those from the European Union said.

Both Chapo and Mondlane have indicated their willingness to engage in dialogue, but the opposition leader has said his participation is conditional on the publication of voting data at polling station level by election authorities.