The executive coordinator of the Office of Reforms and Structuring Projects, João Osvaldo Machatine, believes that the discussion on the problem involving the cost of tolls in the country has to be done in an integrated manner, placing the issue of the tariffs charged and the real income of the Mozambican population on the same line of approach.

According to the government official sworn in this Monday by the Head of State, only an integrated and simultaneous discussion will offer the country the best way to discuss the ways forward, so that there is fairness in the way the issue should be addressed and resolved.

"We need a balance between tariffs and people's income. We can even have tolls that are fairly priced, but if people, if the population doesn't have enough income, that price that we think is appropriate for road maintenance doesn't match the capacity of the population. So it's not just about looking at tolls in isolation, we need to look at the whole chain that contributes to the increase in income, that contributes to the well-being of the population, from housing, employment, education and health," said Machatine, in a publication by the Savannah newspaperHe reiterated that "if we look at things in isolation, we could be solving one aspect and damaging another".

For Machatine, the demonstrations that have been taking place in the country since October 2024 are a demonstration of this reality, in other words, "people are equipped with the knowledge and skills to be able to demand and charge those who govern".

(Photo DR)