The opposition leader, Venancio Mondlane, has called on his supporters to hold peaceful protests from today to Wednesday when Daniel Chapo is due to be installed as president.
Mondlane claims he won the presidential vote and that the results were rigged in favour of Chapo’s Frelimo party, which has been in power for 50 years.
Two opposition parties, Renamo and the Democratic Movement of Mozambique, MDM, announced they would boycott today’s session, which will swear in new parliamentarians. Renamo won 28 seats in the 250-seat house while the MDM took eight.
Renamo spokesman, Marcial Macome had told newsmen that the opening ceremony constitutes a social outrage and a lack of respect for the will of Mozambicans who were deprived of free, fair, and transparent elections.
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Its representative said MDM was boycotting to show it aligned itself with demands for electoral truth.
Frelimo won 171 seats and the Podemos party took 43.
Mondlane, who was backed by the Podemos at the vote, claims he won 53 percent of the votes in the presidential election. The official result says he won 24 percent to Chapo’s 65 percent.
Mondlane returned from over two months of exile last Thursday to push his presidency claims.
Thousands of his supporters rallied in the capital to welcome him, sparking clashes with security forces that left at least three dead, according to an election monitor.
Urging supporters to demonstrate our refusal of the official election result, he called for a peaceful mobilisation, adding that if the assembly takes the oath, it is a betrayal of the will of the people.
According to a tally by a local rights group, the post-election unrest has claimed around 300 lives, with security forces accused of using excessive force, including live bullets, against demonstrators. Authorities also said some police officers have also died.
The unrest has caused major losses to Mozambique’s economy, stopping cross-border trade and affecting shipping, mining and industry.