MOZAMBIQUE REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY’S PATHOLOGIES: AN EXAMINATION OF TWO CAUSINGING FACTORS

When one reflects about Mozambique’s representative democracy one cannot but wonder what is responsible for the inability of democracy to translate into development for the people. Why is democracy in Mozambique encountering so many troubles- insurgencies, corruption, ethnic rivalry, political assassination, among others? How come rather than solving so many social ills, it seems to be aggravating them? These are the major questions that sparked the reflections poured into this paper. Two factors are identified as being responsible for the inability of Mozambique’s representative democracy to engender the promotion of the common good in the country. The first is colonialism. The second is the nature of politics in Mozambique. The colonial contribution, it is argued, is that it shaped Mozambique into a country where, ultimately, politics is devoid of morality. It also made the Mozambican populace to perceive the government of the country as being alien in nature, and one that should be cheated. The nature of politics, as it is, is indicted as not creating an enabling environment for democracy to thrive. In the final analysis, what needs to be done, we conclude, is the re-examination of the principles informing governance and the relationship of the citizens with the state in order to provide a better footing for democracy in Mozambique.