The candidate of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) for President of the Republic, Adalberto da Costa Júnior, spoke at the party's headquarters in Luanda, where he held meetings with various entities, including the US ambassador Tulinabo Mushingi, after having visited several provinces of the country, as part of the electoral campaign.
Reinforcing that he "has no money" and rejecting being financed by the dos Santos family, especially the eldest daughters who are on a collision course with Lourenço, who succeeded José Eduardo dos Santos in 2017, the UNITA leader said that "everything support is welcome", referring to Tchizé dos Santos' support for his candidacy.
"She understands that she should give this support, it's welcome, it's nothing extraordinary. But it's not just Tchizé, yesterday she saw Marcolino Moco give that support [former MPLA leader and Angolan prime minister between 1992 and 1996]. Did it also give us money?" he scoffed, challenging the regime to "publish the support we received."
And he insisted that João Lourenço "should not persecute his opponents", asking: "Aren't the 'marimbondos' they, aren't they there among everyone?".
Adalberto da Costa Júnior stated that "the regime has committed many blunders over the years", with which it is being confronted, which led "part of these members" to appeal to UNITA to vote.
"That's the problem," he stressed.
Asked about the potential for friction invoked by the National Electoral Commission (CNE) to discourage the "Votou, Sentou" movement, with which the president of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and other leaders of opposition parties also expressed disagreement, Costa Júnior insisted that it is necessary to defend the vote and that the act does not violate the law.
"What we have been appealing is: you voted, leave the assembly and stay nearby. There is nothing that violates the law and it is an absolute necessity, insofar as we have an electoral process riddled with absolute illegality", he pointed out, reiterating the appeal for citizens to "know how to defend their future".
He added that UNITA has prepared a vast dossier with evidence about the "misdirection" and denounced electoral violations through complaints to the judicial entities, which have been shelved or remained unanswered, accusing the courts of being hostages to political power.
On the disagreement of leaders of other opposition parties, including the Broad Convergence for the Salvation of Angola - Electoral Coalition (CASA-CE), Social Renewal Party (PRS) and National Patriotic Alliance (APN), who are against the movement, considered that they are "manipulated statements" and that the "great challenge" of seeing the end of the single party remains.
"We have parties that were not legalized because the regime did not want it and we have parties that were legalized because the regime wanted it, we are aware of what is happening", he highlighted, in an allusion to the political project PRA-JA Servir Angola of his number two list and vice-presidential candidate, Abel Chivukuvuku.
Regarding the UNITA campaign, he says that it has received "very strong popular support" which demonstrates that the party can, in fact, win elections, without having to break the law, keep dead people on the electoral roll or "force citizens to go to rallies".
Regarding the campaign boycott attempts that he blames on MPLA opponents, he considered that "unfortunately, it is a practice" that demonstrates that "this is a partisan country".
"In this campaign in the east, we found pump [fuel] after pump, everything closed, a car that stayed behind and passed after us found the pumps all open. These are serious issues, but we took logistics to count on that", he reported.
In the meeting with the ambassador of the United States of America, who has been meeting with all the party presidencies with representations in the National Assembly, Adalberto da Costa Júnior took the opportunity to make "a reflection on the challenges of the campaign" and an approach to the elections.
