A “national strike” is being threatened as Mozambique’s newly elected president is sworn in on Wednesday, more than three months after the disputed election.
Daniel Chapo, who is 48 years old, won 65 percent of the vote in the poll that opposition leaders, election observers and the general public said it was fake.
The outcome sparked a wave of protests – some peaceful but others violent – that led to chaos, including killings and vandalism.
Chapo’s biggest rival is Venâncio Mondlane. He returned from self-imposed exile last week. He spent some time in South Africa where, he says, he survived an assassination attempt.
Now he is calling on Mozambicans to take to the streets once again on inauguration day “against the thieves of the people”.
Both of Mozambique’s leading opposition parties – Renamo and MDM – say they are boycotting Wednesday’s swearing-in ceremony because they too do not recognize Chapo as the real winner.
Even those in Mozambique who wish the newly elected president well are openly questioning his legitimacy.
“Chapo is someone I really admire,” civil society activist Mirna Chitsungo told the BBC.
“I worked with him for four years – I know his willingness to act, his openness to dialogue and his willingness to follow the recommendations of civil society from the field.
“However, he is taking illegitimate power. It stems from a fraudulent electoral process… He is taking power in a context where the people do not accept him.”
‘He will face many enemies’
In addition to winning over a hostile public, Chapo will also have to bring about the economic turnaround and end corruption that he promised on the campaign trail.
“Chapo will face many enemies because Mozambique appears to be run by cartels, including book cartels, drug cartels, sugar cartels, drug cartels, kidnapping cartels, mafia groups,” says analyst and investigative journalist Luis Nhanchote.
“He needs a strong team of experts, willing to join him in this crusade of meticulous group-busting,” he adds.
“But first he must calm the Mozambicans and do everything in his power to restore peace to the country.”
Daniel Francisco Chapo was born on January 6, 1977 in a place called Inhaminga, Sofala province, as the sixth of 10 siblings. Those were the years of civil war in Mozambique, and the armed conflict forced his family to move to another nearby district.
His high school education in the coastal city of Beira was followed by a law degree from Eduardo Mondlane University, then a master’s degree in development management from the Catholic University of Mozambique.
Now married to Gueta Sulemane Chapo, with whom he has three children, Chapo is also said to be a devout Christian and a basketball and soccer enthusiast.
Many current and former colleagues describe Chapa as a humble, hardworking and patient leader.
Before becoming the presidential candidate of the ruling Frelimo party, he was a radio and television presenter, a legal notary, a university lecturer and a provincial governor before reaching the position of Frelimo secretary general.
Speaking at a recent birthday celebration, Chapo himself acknowledged the daunting challenge that awaits him as president.
“We have to economically recover our country… it is easy to destroy it, but to build it is not an easy task.”
National reconciliation, creation of new jobs, reform of the electoral law and decentralization of power are at the top of his agenda, he said.
But how successful can he be without a country behind him?
At the very least, he will mark a change from outgoing President Felipe Nyusi, whom Ms Chitsungo says many Mozambicans will be happy to see back.
“Chapo is a figure of dialogue and consensus, not one who perpetuates Nyusi’s violent style of governance. He has the potential to negotiate with Mondlane.
“Although Chapo may not fully meet all of Mondlane’s requirements, I believe he could meet at least 50% of them,” adds Ms Chitsungo.
Mondlane – a part-time pastor and independent candidate who insists he is the real winner of the polls – is said to have taken refuge in a hotel in the capital. It is not known what security protection is there, nor who pays for it.
He claims that last week, while visiting the market in Maputo, a vendor was shot near him, repeating the murder of two of his close associates in October.
As the mastermind behind protests across the country against the contested election result, many saw him as the voice of the voiceless. However, currently the president-elect’s camp is not publicly engaging with him.
Nevertheless, listening to the public’s grievances and demands, and sometimes ignoring the orders of his ruling Frelimo party, will be key to Chapo’s success, analysts told the BBC.
Finding a way to engage constructively with Mondlane would certainly provide a boost, it seems.
Winning over the public may also require Chapo to say no to “fat pay for the elite and fringe benefits, some of which are 10 times the minimum wage in Mozambique,” Mr Nhachote argued.
In addition, if Chapo is to have any chance of ending the broader political crisis, he will need the support of others to make lasting, structural change, according to prominent priest Reverend Anastacio Chembeze.
“Perhaps we should remain skeptical of a single person to solve Mozambique’s challenges – change must start within the system itself.
“We should strive for a separation of powers within the state apparatus, international monopolies have huge interests in the country, and we have serious ethical issues within the political elites to address.”
Once in office, Chapo is being advised to sack state police chief Bernadino Rafael, analysts told the BBC. He denies any wrongdoing, but is seen by some as the mastermind behind the brutal response to the post-election protests.
They say they want to be replaced by a successor who “respects human rights” and follows legal and international standards. Another proposal of analysts is to bring in a new state attorney.
Namely, Chapo will be the first president of Mozambique who did not fight in the war for independence.
“He is part of a new generation. Part of his background is completely different from his predecessors – he was born in a country that they liberated,” says Mr Nhachote.
“If he wants to leave a real mark in history, he has to challenge those icons from the past. If he can’t [manage that]I’m sure he will run for only one term.”
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