An elite of rulers and magistrates, with strong ties to the Frelimo party, are the current owners of the space.çThe Center for Democracy and Development (CDD) has revealed the location of the old market "A Luta Continua", better known as the "Mercado de Peixe" (Fish Market), on the waterfront of Maputo City.

The source puts forward the names of six of the 10 shareholders of the limited company Cooperativa Vila Praia, Lda, which took over the space after the withdrawal of the former market traders by the Maputo Municipality in 2016.

The Vila Praia Cooperative was formed in May 2020, with a capital stock of 500,000 meticais, where each shareholder contributes with about 50,000 meticais, revealed the non-governmental organization.

In that space, the Vila Praia Cooperative Ltd "is developing the real estate project called "AURA", which consists of a mixed building for housing and commerce.

On the list of shareholders are former members of government, counselor judges (active and retired), former Attorney General, and academics, including Alberto Vaquina, former Prime Minister; Augusto Paulino, former Attorney General, Ernesto Gove, former Governor of the Bank of Mozambique; Jorge Ferrão, former Minister of Education and current Rector of the Pedagogical University of Maputo; Machatine Munguambe, former President of the Administrative Court; and Ozias Pondja, former President of the Supreme Court and current Council Judge of the Constitutional Council, writes CDD.

In the NGO's opinion, the fact that the entrepreneurial company Cooperativa Vila Praia, Lda brings together "four holders and former holders of sovereign bodies (Alberto Vaquina, Jorge Ferrão, Machatine Munguambe and Ozias Pondja)" anticipates the result of any legal battle to compensate the vendors of the old Fish Market for the "expropriation" of the space.

In fact, the mayor of Maputo, Eneas Comiche, - a member of Frelimo - said in a session of the Municipal Assembly of Maputo, that the space belongs to the municipality and that it is up to you to determine the destination, reads the document.