Luanda, Oct. 14, 2024 (Lusa) - Analysts in Angola on Monday challenged the president, João Lourenço, to admit that there is hunger in the country and to pledge not to change the country's constitution to remain in power, calling for a speech to the nation "open to the democratisation of the country."

Lourenço is to make his State of the Nation address on Tuesday, at the opening of the third year (2024-2025) of the current, fifth parliament, in fulfilment of the provisions of Angola's constitution.

For analysts Paulo Inglês and Albino Pakisi, in his message to the nation, Lourenço should acknowledge that hunger in the country is destroying families, many of whom who are relying on sifting thorugh rubbish in order to survive, and announce that he will not seek a constitutional change in order to remain in power.

"The social situation [in the country] remains critical at the moment," said Inglês, a sociologist, in an interview with Lusa. "There are people going hungry and these are the points that the President of the Republic should talk about in his communication, and then also make it clear that there will be no third term and that he will not change the constitution of the Republic of Angola, that too the president should talk about." 

Summing up his expectations for Lourenço's State of the Nation speech, which is scheduled for 15 October, Inglês said that the president, who under the constitution has executive powers, is expected to present a summary of the government's achievements "without any in-depth analysis of the country's situation."

Lourenço "will want to justify himself by saying that he has had some legislative initiatives and some economic measures and he will say that these are yielding results, but they are not visible - I think that will be the line of his argument," he said.

Inglês lamented the country's current socio-economic situation, calling for "clarity" in the president's discourse on economic policy, which he said is not working, as inflation has not slowed and the national currency, the kwanza, continues to weaken."

Lourenço will, Inglês said, "want to fan the flames on the issue of the national minimum wage, but we've already seen that that was a trick that was used, because in fact the minimum wage hasn't increased; it was just an increase in the subsidies given to workers."

Albino Pakisi, an analyst, theologian and philosopher, agreed that the government's social policy "is a total failure" - expressing the hope that the president will " admit once and for all that the country is in social difficulties and that families are starving.

"We have children and families eating out of rubbish bins, so rather than the President of the Republic saying that hunger is relative, he has to assume that hunger is not relative in order to find solutions," Pakisi said in an interview with Lusa.

"Not even in wartime did we have the social situation we have today, of broken families, starving, occupying rubbish bins," he went on. "From a social point of view, the government is a total failure, even with all the social programmes it has. We need to admit this so that we can recognise it and correct it with the data."

Pakisi also argued, in an interview with Lusa, that the Angolan head of state should present the country's prospects for the period from 2025 to 2027, because the country's economic situation "is serious, with small, medium and large companies going bankrupt, increasingly impoverishing families."

He said that he hoped for an open discourse on the democratisation of Angola, pointing out that the country has passed "draconian laws, which are worse than in dictatorial countries," such as the law that criminalises vandalism of public property with penalties of up to 25 years in prison.

"It would be good for the president to pronounce... on this," said Pakisi, lamenting what he diagnosed as “some retreat from internal democracy” in the governing MPLA party, which “also affects the country” because "if the MPLA isn't a democratic party, it won't accept democracy for our country, and that scares us. 

"It would also be important for the president to talk about freedoms," he reiteraed.

"Angola is a country where a considerable number of young people, considered ‘revús’ [as the government critics are often called], are fleeing the country and some are in prison," said Pakisi. "The President of the Republic cannot turn a deaf ear to this situation, which is tarnishing his reputation."

DAS/ARO // ARO.

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