The MPLA justified the favorable vote with the guidance of its leader, João Lourenço, also President of the Republic.
UNITA deputy, Mihaela Webba, who presented the axes of her party's legislative initiative, said that the democratic administration of the State at local level "requires" the creation of autonomous local authorities, democratically elected to provide these local public services and to the pursuit of own interests.
The approval of this diploma by the National Assembly also reflects the safeguarding of the integrity and image of the State as a good person, and its effective implementation "will produce the greatest social and administrative transformation that Angola has experienced in recent decades", according to the Union deputy National Council for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).
For Mihaela Webba, the National Assembly "cannot continue to support a flagrant violation" of the Constitution, "through unconstitutional omission", which the existence of local authorities concerns, due to "legislative inertia" for the effective creation of local authorities.
The deputy of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), Elisângela Coelho, welcomed the discussion of the UNITA initiative, considering the moment as a sovereign opportunity for a dialogue with urbanity aiming at converging points.
MPLA deputy Jú Martins, in his declaration of vote, argued that his party voted in favor of the UNITA initiative because it was imbued with an "altruistic spirit and innovative political maturity".
He stated that the MPLA's vote was influenced by two factors, namely its leader's orientation towards "accelerating" the approval of the municipal legislative package and by reading the party's performance in the 2022 elections, where it won in 143 of the 164 municipalities in the country.
"A circumstance that compels us to work hard to extend this advantage at municipal level", he stressed.
The agenda for this Thursday's plenary meeting included discussion and voting on most of the proposed law on the institutionalization of local authorities, an initiative of the President of the Republic, João Lourenço, a discussion that began in the second part of the session, with the presentation of the diploma by the Minister of the Territory, Dionísio da Fonseca, but which was later suspended, "by imposition" of the parliament's rules, for its continuation on Friday.
The deputy of the National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA) Nimi a Simbi defended an essential analysis and merger of the two diplomas.
The Municipal Legislative Package has 13 diplomas that will regulate the exercise of municipal power in the country, ten of which have already been approved by the National Assembly and published in the Official Gazette.
These ten legal instruments will be joined by three more, whose proposals were submitted to the National Assembly, including the bill on the institutionalization of local authorities and another that approves the remuneration status of the heads of bodies and services of local authorities.
MPLA and UNITA have had differences regarding the way in which local authorities will be implemented (simultaneously or gradually) and the opposition party accuses João Lourenço of wanting to avoid local elections.
João Lourenço rejects the criticism and claims leadership of the municipal process, saying that the conclusion of the legislative package depends on parliament.
