Presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane said today in the city of Beira that three people were seriously injured and 12 illegally detained as a result of clashes between his supporters and the Republic of Mozambique Police (PRM) yesterday morning in the city of Nampula.

According to the Podemos-backed candidate, the PRM used real bullets and tear gas to disperse the population. "One of the people was shot twice in each leg, another in the back and one in the arm. That one has already been discharged".

He said that he had already reported the situation to the Attorney General of the Republic, Beatriz Buchili, requesting the release of the 12 people illegally detained.

Speaking to journalists, he criticized the PRM in Nampula for making allegedly false statements about himself ordering his supporters to attack the police.

"The Director of the Order in Nampula lied through his teeth, saying that I ordered people to attack the police," he began.

Giving his version of the events, he said that it was the police who started the commotion by firing "indiscriminately", after almost an hour of peaceful marching from Nampula Airport.

"As if that wasn't enough, they brought in another riot police. They came with a water tank, tear gas and started firing real bullets," he noted.