Angola: Opposition accuses the Executive of neglecting the Institutionalization of Local Authorities.

Some officials from political parties interviewed by Novo Jornal say that this position is a way for the Executive to buy time to delay the holding of local elections in Angola. The UNITA Parliamentary Group argues that the priority of the National Assembly should be the completion of the local legislative package, to return power to the sovereign people.

According to UNITA, the non-approval of the local legislative package is “denying constitutional rights and keeping the people dependent on the will of one man and an autocratic regime through poverty, misery, illiteracy, corruption, and party patronage.”

The Secretary-General of the Democratic Bloc, Muata Sebastião, also advocates for the approval of the Draft Law on the Institutionalization of Local Authorities in the country as a priority. “Why doesn’t the National Assembly approve the Institutionalization of Local Authorities, the only document missing from the local legislative package? And the concern is to review the Organic Law of the Municipal Police, the Transitional Measures to be adopted for the Implementation of Local Authorities, and the Remuneration Statute of the Holders of Local Government Bodies and Services?” questioned the Secretary-General of the Democratic Bloc, Muata Sebastião.

According to the politician, the ruling party and its Executive do not have the political will for local elections in the country, at a time when the electorate has lost confidence in the leaders who do little or nothing for their needs.

The President of CASA-CE, Manuel Fernandes, says that all maneuvers by the MPLA and the Executive are identified, as it makes no sense to consider such laws, leaving behind the Institutionalization of Local Authorities, which is a key document in this process.

“The Organic Law of the Municipal Police, the Transitional Measures to be adopted for the Implementation of Local Authorities, and the Remuneration Statute of the Holders of Local Government Bodies and Services are laws that should be approved later. This should not be the Executive’s priority for now,” he added.

According to him, parties with or without seats in the National Assembly, civil society, and the general population will continue to pressure the Executive so that Angola holds local elections for the first time in the country this year or next.

The spokesperson for FNLA, Ndonda Nzinga, says that the approval of the Draft Law on the Institutionalization of Local Authorities in Angola is essential for the completion of the local legislative package. “Approve the Institutionalization of Local Authorities and then the other laws can be discussed. Local elections cannot continue to be postponed,” he concluded.