Opposition leader’s bank accounts unfrozen

The Mozambican political party Anamola stated on Friday that it found it strange that Venancio Mondlane ‘s bank accounts had been unfrozen while he remains accused in the case relating to the post-election demonstrations, reports the Club of Mozambique. The comments by acting leader of Anamola, James Njiji, came after the Supreme Court ordered banking institutions to unfreeze Mondlane’s accounts on the grounds that the conditions for maintaining the measure no longer existed. ‘What is truly strange is how you can accuse a Mozambican individual of inciting terrorism and then have to unfreeze the accounts through which he moves money. Is there no fear that he might continue to finance terrorism?’ asked Njiji. In November 2024, one month after the general election, the Maputo City Judicial Court ordered the freezing of all of Mondlane’s bank accounts, while also requesting information on the respective transactions and bank statements for that year, with particular attention to money received from abroad or transferred out of the country. At that time, judicial investigations were already underway against the politician, who had organised the post-election protests and never recognised the official results of the general election of 9 October 2024, in which he stood as a candidate for the presidency office. The decision to unfreeze the accounts comes just over a month before the start of Mondlane’s trial, scheduled for 17 November at the Supreme Court. The criminal proceedings were brought in connection with the post-election demonstrations, with the politician charged with the offences of publicly condoning crime, incitement to collective disobedience, public instigation to commit a crime, instigation to terrorism and incitement to terrorism, carrying a potential sentence of over 20 years’ imprisonment.