The crux of the issue lies with the overlapping of Mozambique’s ruling party, Frente de Libertação de Moçambique (FRELIMO), and the state. On 5 February 2016, the party hosted an extraordinary summit of its central committee. This summit was convened to restructure the FRELIMO secretariat, after the party adopted a new internal directive, stating that no officeholder within an internal structure may concurrently serve on provincial or national assemblies.
The extraordinary summit therefore resulted in six positions being filled by newly elected representatives. Four high-ranking members of the FRELIMO secretariat were required to step down, as they were simultaneously serving as members of parliament. Additionally, two other ministers resigned from their positions in the secretariat.
Many critics view the reshuffling as an attempt by President Nyusi to leave his imprint on the party’s secretariat through cleansing the body of FRELIMO members loyal to Nyusi’s predecessor, Armando Guebuza. This is reflected in the fact that the four secretaries that were asked to resign are seen to be aligned with Guebuza. At a time when there is internal unrest in FRELIMO (as divided factions within the party battle for control), the reshuffling can be interpreted as an attempt by Nyusi to shore up his power within the party.
Although Mozambique – like many African countries – is saturated with anti-corruption initiatives, these are often poorly implemented and enforced.
However, others consider this a step in the right direction towards minimising party and state interwovenness; which has become structural in nature, with senior Frelimo officials controlling the state, its structures, and its interests. A new paper on the issue, ‘I Didn’t Struggle to be Poor’: The Interwovenness of Party, State and Business in Mozambique, discusses interwovenness and additional measures that are currently in place to combat the issue in the country.
According to the Mozambique Country Review Report, ‘the government does not frown on, but rather encourages, public servants to own and operate businesses to supplement their incomes’
Currently, the impact that this directive will have on interwovenness remains speculative. The official line states that it is a part of the initiative to strengthen party structures and functions. While not explicitly aimed at minimising interwovenness, it has the potential to do so, along a number of other recently-introduced initiatives.
The crucial ingredient is political will, which can be in short supply when political and economic interests converge.
