The postponement of the reading of the verdict in the main "hidden debts" case divides opinions in the country. Jurists question the reasons invoked by the judge of the case; the opposition speaks of political motivations.

The judge in the "hidden debts" case, Efigénio Baptista, announced this Monday (18.07) the postponement of the reading of the sentence, which was scheduled for August 1st. The new date is November 30th.

Faced with the postponement, jurist and journalist Tomás Vieira Mário speaks of "public frustration.

"It is a postponement that creates a lot of speculation and a lot of frustration, which also puts to the test the credibility of the Mozambican justice system as to its independence from the national political power," Vieira Mário tells DW.

FRELIMO's Congress coming up

The Mozambican opposition believes that the postponement is politically motivated.

For Augusto Pelembe, spokesman for the Democratic Movement of Mozambique (MDM), the second political force in the opposition, "all the decisions that the judge is taking are political orientations.

The Mozambican National Resistance (RENAMO), the main opposition party, points out that there is a generalized mistrust of the justice institutions in the country.

In the opinion of José Manteigas, spokesperson for the party, "this is why Mozambicans do not look favorably on this postponement," especially because "an event that will be decisive for the FRELIMO party, for its very survival," will soon take place.

On social networks, many people linked the postponement of the reading of the sentence with the holding of the congress of the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) in September.

Sentencing may have been delayed to "avoid holding a disavowing congress," says Augusto Pelembe of the MDM. "The wing of former President Armando Guebuza is among the defendants [in the 'hidden debts' case]. If she is convicted and if she feels wronged, it certainly [could] create fissures in the congress."

The jurist Baltazar Fael, from the Center for Public Integrity (CIP), considers the citizens' distrust to be legitimate, but he advises a lot of pondering, because, at this moment, the judge "doesn't know very well how to act.

"On the one hand, he can rush the reading of the sentence and be illegal. On the other hand, he is also pressured by issues of a political nature," notes Fael, pointing out that Justice always needs time to decide.

A complex process

The judge of the case, Efigénio Baptista, justified the postponement of the reading of the "hidden debts" verdict with the complexity of the process, of more than 30 thousand pages.

But this argument does not convince jurist Tomás Vieira Mário, who, "when he set the date [of August 1st], he already knew the process and how complex it was.

Jurist João Filipe insists, however, that the judge Efigénio Baptista must be given time to study the whole process, so that he can present a well-founded verdict.

"After the trial, having heard about 60 declarants and 19 defendants, of course the case became more voluminous. Even if I read the sentence on August 1st, it seems to me that we would say that the sentence was handed down," says Filipe.

Still, for jurist Tomás Vieira Mário, the four months announced by the judge is a long period, regardless of the 'nuances' of the process.

"Given the nature of the case, the quality of the defendants, it was to be expected that whatever the hindrance was, it would be addressed in a shorter period," Vieira sentenced.

The hidden debts have damaged the Mozambican state by more than 2 billion dollars.