The mayor of Quelimane, Manuel de Araújo, says that Renamo's spokesman, José Manteigas, violated the statutes by announcing the current president, Ossufo Momade, as a presidential candidate before this year's congress.

"If you read the party statutes, you'll notice that either my friend José Manteigas doesn't know the statutes or he has flagrantly violated them," declared Manuel de Araújo, a senior Renamo member, quoted by the private channel STV.

José Manteigas announced a few days ago that Ossufo Momade is Renamo's chosen candidate for this year's presidential elections, despite criticism from segments that have ruled out his resignation, accusing him of inertia.

"Ossufo Momade is our candidate and the president who is bringing success to the party," declared José Manteigas, which generated some controversy internally, given that the party's candidate should be chosen at the congress, which should be held this year, according to Renamo's statutes.

In light of José Manteigas' statements, Manuel de Araújo says that Renamo's Jurisdictional Council should pronounce itself, warning that the party is not the property of the Political Commission, but of its members.

"Renamo is the 'father' of democracy and being the 'father' of democracy means complying with democratic precepts," stressed Manuel de Araújo, stating that the main opposition party in Mozambique has set up a department to assess public opinion trends, including the political capital of each member of the board.

In the meantime, however, it is known that Venâncio Mondlane, Renamo's candidate for Maputo in the last local elections, has publicly admitted the possibility of running for the leadership of the party and the presidential elections next October if there is popular support.