Frelimo can change if it wants to

The Constitutional Council sees no reason why the president of the party can’t also be president of the country. But that doesn’t mean Frelimo couldn’t separate those powers if it wanted to

Good morning and welcome to yesterday’s newsletter. The Constitutional Council (CC) has delivered its verdict on whether it is unconstitutional for the same person to be president of Mozambique and president of a party. While formally the CC declined to rule on the question, in rejecting the case it made clear it saw no reason to view holding both posts simultaneously as unconstitutional.

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That need not be the end of the matter, however. Mozambique’s political parties, and in particular Frelimo, as the only one ever to hold the presidency of the country, could decide on their own to divide the two roles, and cease having the party leader also be the party’s candidate for president of the country.