The Mayor of Quelimane, Manuel de Araújo, today admitted the possibility of running for president of the largest opposition party, Renamo.

"If none of them answer, then I'll have to move on or I'll support others who answer those questions," said the mayor, quoted today by RTP.

He warns that this will happen if there are no candidates who represent the interests of youth, women, former combatants and the intelligentsia. "At that point, I, as a party activist, will be obliged and forced to launch an alternative candidacy"

Renamo is currently experiencing internal splits, and three party members have already presented their candidacies to the public. These are former Maputo mayoral candidate Venâncio Mondlane, the son of the party's historic leader, Elias Dhlakama, and former MP Juliano Picardo. The party has not yet held a congress to decide who will be its next president.

Manuel de Araújo believes that this is a decisive moment in the party's history.

He spoke out against recent pronouncements by Renamo spokesman José Manteigas, according to which the current party president, Ossufo Momade, is the only presidential candidate for the party. In an interview with Rádio Moçambique, Manteigas said that the current Renamo leadership can automatically renew its mandate if no congress is held.

"There is no doubt that Renamo needs more speed, Renamo needs new blood, Renamo needs a more present, more powerful leadership," he said, quoted by RTP.

However, he warns of the need for Ossufo Momade to undergo a metamorphosis if he continues to lead Renamo and intends to take the party to a successful conclusion, otherwise he will go from being the "father to the stepfather of democracy".