US names redacted defendants in ‘tuna bond’ indictment; Real journalists debunk Amade Abubacar propaganda
US names redacted defendants in ‘tuna bond’ indictment; Real journalists debunk Amade Abubacar propaganda
Welcome to Zitamar’s daily Mozambique briefing for 8 March, 2019
Agenda:
Today: Extradition hearing in London for three former Credit Suisse bankers, Andrew Pearse, Surjan Singh, and Detelina Subeva
Today: President Filipe Nyusi visits the province of Gaza.
The latest from the Zitamar Live Blog:
Exclusive photos of Andrew Pearse and Detelina Subeva leaving their extradition hearing in London today. It was adjourned to 29 March
The US request to extradite Manuel Chang will be dealt with first, the judge in the Kempton Park Magistrate Court in Johannesburg decided yesterday, and only then will the Mozambican request be looked at. More here
The best of the rest:
US names redacted defendants in ‘tuna bond’ indictment (Financial Times, VOA, Carta de Moçambique)
Nyusi and Ossufo Momade meet again to move peace process along (AIM, MediaFax, O País)
Real journalists debunk Amade Abubacar propaganda (A Verdade, Carta de Moçambique)
Defunct Beira gas import terminal to enter operation as Sahara takes over imports (Savana, Carta de Moçambique)
US names redacted defendants in ‘tuna bond’ indictment (Financial Times, VOA, Carta de Moçambique)
The US has revealed three additional defendants in the Mozambique offshore security loans scandal, including Antonio Carlos do Rosário, the Mozambican mastermind of the scheme. Najib Allam, the chief financial officer of Privinvest, is another of the defendants, and the third is Mozambican Teofilo Nhangumele. Do Rosário and Nhangumele were named in January by Carta de Moçambique and Savana as the two redacted Mozambican defendants.
Yesterday, Angela Buque, the wife of former SISE head Gregorio Leao, was arrested in Maputo, along with an associate, Fabiao Mabunda. Today, the three former Credit Suisse bankers named in the US indictment have an extradition hearing in London.
Lusa says the decision to name the remaining defendants was taken after the US authorities accepted that the defendants probably already knew they were on the list. The Mozambicans cannot be extradited under the Mozambican constitution, so should escape US justice as long as they don’t leave the country. They are both currently in custody in Mozambique.
Nyusi and Ossufo Momade meet again to move peace process along (AIM, MediaFax, O País)
President Filipe Nyusi received Renamo leader Ossufo Momade at the presidency yesterday for the second time in a week (as reported on the Zitamar Live Blog). Speaking at an event in the afternoon, Nyusi said he wouldn’t go into the specifics of what they discussed, but that the aim was to make progress towards a peace accord. Earlier in the week, the two men each appointed one extra member to the joint technical group working on disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration, created in August 2018.
There are signs that the Nyusi-Momade relationship is becoming as warm, and as important, as the Nyusi-Dhlakama relationship was. For now, however, Momade has nothing like the grip on his party - including its military arm - that Dhlakama had. That too is slowly changing though and could be turned around by a strong showing in this October’s presidential elections. Nevertheless, the peace process will take longer than we are currently led to believe - and indeed any accord signed after October’s elections is likely to be more sustainable than one signed before.
Real journalists debunk Amade Abubacar propaganda (A Verdade, Carta de Moçambique)
Amade Abubacar’s family is not able to visit him, Amade’s father told A Verdade, contradicting media reports following a state-orchestrated media visit to Amade this week (See Zitamar Live Blog).Another source said the Mieze prison, where Amade is being held, simply does not allow family visits.
Reporters from Carta de Moçambique tried to visit Amade yesterday, and were not allowed in - being told “visits are done by letter.” In a letter to the visitors, Amade said he believes he will have a day in court next week.
Wednesday’s visit was transparent manipulation by the justice authorities in Cabo Delgado in response to Amnesty International’s claims of Amade’s mistreatment, and it’s disappointing that O País went along with state newspaper Notícias and state broadcaster TVM in uncritically carrying the propaganda. Notícias even went so far as to accuse Amade of being involved with the insurgency, of which there is no evidence.
It is to be hoped that Amade really does get a court hearing next week, where the judge ought to throw out his case and set him free.
Defunct Beira gas import terminal to enter operation as Sahara takes over imports (Savana, Carta de Moçambique)
A new gas import terminal in Beira, owned by state-owned Petromoc, has yet to be used despite being inaugurated by President Nyusi in May last year, Savana reports on its front page today after tenacious efforts by Petromoc officials to kill the story. However, that should change after the first tanker arrives there today, Carta de Moçambique says - allowing central and northern Mozambique to receive canisters of cooking gas (LPG) without them having to travel up from Maputo. Fuel import agency IMOPETRO has just chosen Sahara Energy to be the new LPG importer and will bring in 25,000 tonnes per year - 5,000 tonnes more than was imported under the previous contract with Addax Petroleum. Sahara won the import contest ahead of Petredec, Geogas, and Glencore who offered the lowest price but whose product was not of the required quality, according to IMOPETRO.
Photo of the Day
Filipe Nyusi and Ossufo Momade at the Presidency in Maputo, 7 March 2019