Nelito Ekuikui, who for nearly two years headed the provincial secretariat of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA, the largest opposition party) in Luanda, the country's largest political square, was removed from office on Monday by the current leader of the Isaías Samakuva party.
Samakuva returned to the leadership of the party after the ruling of the Constitutional Court (TC) annulled the deliberations issued at the XIII Congress held in 2019, thus removing ACJ, president elected in this conclave.
This Tuesday, in statements to Lusa, Nelito Ekuikui said that he had been waiting for this removal from office, saying that nothing surprised him and that in politics the positions "are temporary and not permanent".
"I received the notification very calmly, calmly and as a party activist, forged in the difficulty and in the defense of what is purer, nothing surprised me", said the "little brother" politician.
With no leadership position in UNITA, Nelito Ekuikui assured that he will continue to defend his party and its independence "so as not to suffer deep inferences, the party is under attack".
The party "is being a victim of the regime that sustains power, the MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, in power since 1975) via the Constitutional Court, needs its militants to be in the front line for defence," he pointed out.
"And I am now better positioned, as a grassroots activist and member of the political commission, to defend the party and I am firm," guaranteed the fellow member of the National Assembly.
The deadline for submitting candidacies for the leadership of UNITA, the main opposition party that will elect a new president following the removal of Adalberto da Costa Júnior, is between 4 and 11 November.
The announcement was made on Monday by Anastácio Sicato, spokesman for the XIII Congress, who presented the schedule of preparations for the conclave where the new leaders will be elected, after the TC ruling that annulled the decisions taken at the XIII Congress held in 2019, and the direction that resulted from it.
Anastácio Sicato said that candidates who ran for the previous congress can stand again, and it has not yet been decided whether the future president of the party will be, or not, the head of the list in the next general elections, scheduled for 2022.
The XIII Congress, convened for December 2, 3 and 4, will have 1150 delegates who will be elected by base activists in the preparatory conferences.
Regarding the December congress, Nelito Ekuikui said that he supports the re-candidacy of Adalberto Costa Júnior and assured that he will be in the "front line" and will now have "greater openness to campaign", having been without any leadership position.
Despite declaring support for the ACJ, which led UNITA for the past two years, Nelito also defended multiple candidacies for the post of president of his party, considering that the party "is open" and must maintain this mechanism internally.
"The party is open and I think the party should continue to have multiple candidacies and it's good for the country, UNITA can't back down, UNITA can't just have a single candidacy, I think people should come to congress," he noted.
"Those who think differently from the current president and who have turned into an internal opposition in the past two years should have this opportunity to present themselves to the congress which should clarify which side the militants' will actually lies," he argued.
Asked about alleged internal wings, which he would be creating against Isaias Samakuva, as circulated on social networks, he said that said information does not make sense because Samakuva is a transitional president.
"President Samakuva is a transitional president, he has 30 days, why would I create wards against him if he is not here to stay, makes sense? It makes no sense. President Samakuva is conducting a transitional process and not reasons for create wards against him", justified Nelito Ekuikui.
