Fernando Tomé Laureano, former provincial secretary of Sinprof in Luanda and candidate for the leadership of this body at national level, is part of a group of six members of the national board of Sinprof who were removed by the outgoing board, allegedly to benefit candidacies that were "convenient" for the board.
The situation was reported this Tuesday, at a press conference, by João Francisco, also suspended from that body and spokesperson for Fernando Tomé Laureano's candidacy, considering that the national board of Sinprof "has been constantly violating" the statutory principles since 2018.
Francisco denounced alleged persecution of some members, removed in 2018 from the previous national secretariat without any prior notice, with inquiries under the pretext of being against the new executive of the national secretariat appointed by the president.
The electoral congress for the renewal of mandates of the central and provincial bodies of Sinprof is scheduled for 17 to 19 October, with the period for submitting candidacies running from 21 to 25 September.
As such, the spokesperson noted, candidate Fernando Tomé Laureano, who was arbitrarily suspended from the national council, is unable to submit his candidacy, noting that his work team, which was collecting signatures in support of the candidate, has also been suspended (since 22 August).
"In light of these facts, a climate of gloom and uncertainty has been created within the organisation regarding the future of Sinprof, where today we are witnessing that the exercise of freedom of expression and the right to free competition is seen as an affront to the president of Sinprof", he lamented.
He recalled that the current president of the union had already announced, in a virtual meeting, the name of his candidate for the position, "violating the principle of equal treatment", by not also announcing the candidacy of Fernando Tomé Laureano, announced in October 2023.
Laureano, who said that a legal process has been underway since 30 August at the Luanda District Court for a precautionary measure to annul the congress, said that the current leadership of the union will have to prove in court the allegations of incitement of hatred, tribalism and electoral corruption.
"In fact, after becoming aware of the allegations, which are unfounded, we filed a criminal complaint, because the president and his team will have to prove whether we in fact created incitement of hatred, tribalism and disrespect for our hierarchical superiors", he concluded.
