Mozambique gets first female presidential aspirant

Mozambicans will for the first time have a woman on the ballot paper when they go to the polls in October.

Maria Alice Mabota, a revered human rights activist and former president of the Mozambique human rights league, has filed her papers on the ticket of a number of parties.

She becomes the fifth candidate to file papers for the October 15 vote which will have president Filipe Nyusi contesting for another term in charge of the southern African nation

Mabota will contest as candidate of a coalition, the democratic alliance coalition, cad, a group of six parties that she is not a member of any but was chosen to run on their ticket.

Under Mozambican electoral laws, the nomination papers of all candidates are vetted and cleared by the constitutional council, Mozambique’s highest body in matters of constitutional and electoral law.