Post-election protests in Mozambique paralysed two power plants on Saturday, the national utility said as deadly unrest rocks the southern African nation.The ruling Frelimo party, in power since 1975, was declared winner of the October 9 polls but the results were denounced as fraudulent by the opposition.”As part of protests taking place throughout the country, a group of demonstrators went to the Ressano Garcia and Gigawatt thermoelectric plants, demanding a total shutdown of energy production,” Electricidade de Mocambique said.”Fearing unforeseeable repercussions,” the firm said the plants near the border with South Africa were “forced to halt energy production,” as protests ramped up following the disputed election.The stoppage of the two power stations “has led to a shortfall in supply capacity” equivalent to “30 percent of demand in the southern region of the country”, which has a population of around six million, according to the public operator.Traffic in the area around the plants was severely disrupted, according to videos posted on social networks that AFP was not immediately able to verify.When contacted, South Africa’s Border Management Authority (BMA) spokeswoman Mmemme Mogotsi said there was “a situation of intermittent closures of the border” following “the guidelines of the Mozambican government”.Restrictions were also in place in the capital Maputo since the morning but varied greatly from one district to another, an AFP journalist on the ground saw.- Opposition claims assassination attempt -The latest unrest came after opposition candidate Venancio Mondlane said in a Facebook post that there had been “another failed attempt to assassinate me”, a month after claiming a first attempt on his life.Mondlane, a former radio host, sought refuge in South Africa after challenging the poll results and his current whereabouts are unknown.Supporters of Mondlane, who came in second behind Frelimo’s Daniel Chapo, have taken to the streets after the opposition figure contested the official count.The electoral commission maintains Chapo — seeking to succeed party colleague Filipe Nyusi — received nearly 71 percent of the vote, to 20 for Mondlane, leader of the small Podemos party.But Mondlane contends a separate count found he received 53 percent of the vote, with Chapo only taking 36 percent.Mozambique’s Constitutional Council is due to confirm the election results at least two weeks ahead of the January inauguration ceremony.International observers say the vote was marked by a number of irregularities.At least 90 people have been killed in Mozambique since October 21 amid clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces, civil society group Plataforma Decide said Friday.
