Imara African Cement Report Africa, the last cement frontier Angola ...

Political landscape – A foregone conclusion
The Movimento Popular de Libertação de Angola (MPLA) has dominated Angola's politics since independence in 1975
and it has further consolidated its political hegemony since the end of Angola‟s 27-year civil war in 2002. Power is
centralised in the office of the presidency, which has been held for the past three decades by Mr José Eduardo dos
Santos. Following the success of the 2008 legislative elections, the next legislative elections are expected to take
place in 2012, and with the adoption of a new constitution, Mr Dos Santos is sure to win again.
Angola's motto is Virtus Unita Fortior, a Latin phrase meaning "Virtue is stronger when united." The executive
branch of the government is composed of the President, the Vice-Presidents and the Council of Ministers. For
decades, political power has been concentrated in the Presidency.
Governors of the 18 provinces are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the president. The Constitutional Law
of 1992 establishes the broad outlines of government structure and delineates the rights and duties of citizens. The
legal system is based on Portuguese and customary law but is weak and fragmented, and courts operate in only 12 of
more than 140 municipalities. A Supreme Court serves as the appellate tribunal; a Constitutional Court with powers
of judicial review was only constituted in 2010, despite statutory authorization.
The first legislative election in 16 years took place in September 2008. The MPLA won by a landslide with 81% of the
vote. The elections were contested by 14 political parties, but only four opposition parties were able to secure
representation in parliament, where the MPLA‟s landslide translated into 191 of the 220 seats. 16 seats went to
UNITA, 8 to the Partido de Renovação Social (PRS), 3 to the Frente Nacional para a Libertação de Angola (FNLA), and
2 to Nova Democracia. International observers pronounced satisfaction that the elections had been „free and fair‟
but, for the most part, the MPLA had a monopoly of the media and campaign financing that placed other parties at a
clear disadvantage.
Suspected electoral irregularities notwithstanding, however, the outcome was accepted by the opposition, and gave
the MPLA the strong democratic mandate that it previously lacked. Having won two-thirds of the National Assembly
seats, the MPLA now has the majority needed to push through changes to the constitution.
In contrast with the success enjoyed by the MPLA, the main opposition party, União Nacional para a Independência
Total de Angola (UNITA) polled just 10.4% of the vote, and went from having 70 to just 16 seats in parliament.
UNITA‟s poor showing has cast serious doubt over its future as the main opposition party, and its leader, Isaias
Samakuva, has indicated that his current term will be his last.
Judiciary antiquated and in need of overhaul
According to its Constitution, Angola is a parliamentary democracy. It operates through executive, legislative and
judicial branches whose separate powers allow for checks and balances among all three. However, in practice, there
are still many shortcomings. The Angolan legal system is antiquated, complex and grossly inefficient (cases can drag
on for years). The judicial branch remains weak and subordinated to central authorities. Courts are hindered by a
lack of qualified personnel, with apparently only around 40% of magistrates holding a law degree.
Adoption of new Constitution in January 2010 ensures status quo
The new constitution, adopted in 2010, further sharpened the authoritarian character of the regime. In the future,
there will be no presidential elections: the president and the vice-president of the political party which comes out
strongest in the parliamentary elections automatically become president and vice-president of Angola. Through a
variety of mechanisms, the state president controls all the other organs of the state, so that the principle of the
division of power is not maintained.
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