segunda-feira, outubro 08, 2007

Mozambique: Demands for Removal of District Administrator (1)

Retirado do allafrica

(Maputo)

8 October 2007 Posted to the web 8 October 2007

People attending a public meeting in Chemba district, in the central Mozambican province of Sofala, have demanded the sacking of the district administrator, Jorge Daul.

According to a report in Monday's issue of the Beira daily paper "Diario de Mocambique", the demand was raised on Saturday at a meeting in Chemba, chaired by provincial governor Alberto Vaquina, who is touring the districts in the northern part of Sofala.

A local regulo (chief), Dias Chave, told Vaquina "We want the administrator to leave Chemba because he's not working for the people. You (Vaquina) should take him back, or put him in some other district, and give us Antonio Cuela instead".

Cuela used to be the Chemba district permanent secretary, and was evidently well liked. However, he was recently promoted to become administrator in the neighbouring district of Caia, after the abrupt resignation of the previous Caia administrator, Lucas Renco.

Chave went further and issued a political warning - unless Daul was removed, he said, nobody in Chemba would vote for the ruling Frelimo Party in next year's provincial elections, or in the general elections scheduled for 2009.

Daul is accused of discrimination in the distribution of cattle to peasant households, and in selecting beneficiaries for food- for-work programmes. A further charge is that Daul ordered the destruction of houses belonging to local civil servants, and to elderly and disabled people, in the name or "territorial organisation", but reneged on his promise to pay them compensation.

A widow, Augusta Vinte, told Vaquina she had been unjustly sacked from her job in the district administration, and did not know who she and her seven children would now survive.

A man named Ezequiel Trabuco accused Daul of destroying the flags of opposition political parties, mentioning in particular the country's third largest party, the PDD (Party of Peace, Democracy and Development). "This is not how you build democracy", he declared.

Vaquina promised to set up a commission of inquiry to look into the accusations. He told reporters that the results of the inquiry would be announced shortly.

Daul claimed his opponents were in the minority. "I'm not worried, because it's not the majority who are complaining", he said. "What's happening is that I'm working well, and so there are complaints".

As for destroying opposition flags, Daul's excuse was that he is "disciplining" political parties, "because their flags and offices should not be set up any old way".

Suicidio Aniceto, head of the district economic services, said the claim of discrimination in the distribution of livestock (in which he as well as Daul had been named) was made by people who did not have any of the conditions necessary to breed cattle.

"People complain because I can't give cattle to people who don't even own any chickens", declared Aniceto.

Sem comentários: