The re-elected mayor of Quelimane, Manuel de Araújo, on Thursday accused the National Electoral Commission (CNE) and its executive body, the Technical Secretariat for Electoral Administration (STAE), of acting as a criminal conspiracy to harm opposition political parties in the October 11 local elections.

Upon taking office for a new five-year term, Manuel de Araújo, quoted by the newspaper MediafaxHe attacked not only the electoral bodies, but also the government, the courts and the police, who tried unsuccessfully to deprive him of victory, as well as the main opposition party, Renamo.

"The fraud attempt in Quelimane came close to succeeding - the CNE announced that the ruling party, Frelimo, had won, although a parallel vote count showed a clear victory for Renamo," says the same publication.

Meanwhile, the Constitutional Council (CC), the country's highest body in matters of constitutional and electoral law, annulled the CNE's decision, recounted the results of the Quelimane polling stations and declared that Renamo had won a majority in the Municipal Assembly and, consequently, Manuel de Araújo had been re-elected mayor.

To this end, De Araújo attributed this victory to his supporters who had rejected the results proclaimed by the CNE. "You (the people of Quelimane) had the courage to challenge the system," he said at the ceremony, stressing that "the CNE had stolen the elections, and if it hadn't been for the courage of the women of Quelimane and the tenacity of their young people, we wouldn't be here on this festive occasion."

For the source, if the Constitutional Council had not annulled the CNE's decision, no one would have been able to govern the municipality of Quelimane, as the determination of the city's inhabitants was demonstrated by the 44 days of protest against the previously announced results.