Luena, Moxico, Angola, March 9, 2026 (Lusa) - The Angolan opposition party, UNITA, on Monday lamented the "extreme poverty" in the east of the country and called for "economic justice" and the allocation of a percentage of diamond revenues to local communities, insisting on the creation of local authorities.
According to the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA, the largest opposition party), whose MPs are meeting in the province of Moxico, eastern Angola, citizens in that province face a situation of "extreme poverty and misery".
"The social and economic situation in the province is clear to see, the rest of our compatriots here are living in extreme poverty, as can be seen. There is a need to do things differently and, in my view, only local authorities will solve this," said Rafael Massanga Savimbi, first vice-president of the UNITA parliamentary group, today.
Speaking in the city of Luena, capital of Moxico province, where UNITA's 13th Parliamentary Conference is taking place, the politician argued for the need to set up local authorities, lamenting the centralisation of power.
"Because the governor [of the province] is here, but then everything is centralised, everything depends on there [Luanda, the centre of political power], and this is the message we want to bring [to the population]," he said.
Massanga Savimbi insisted that the provinces of Moxico, Lunda Norte and Lunda Sul - located in eastern Angola, an area rich in mineral resources, especially diamonds - face several shortages, which would be alleviated "if the landowners [local communities]" were empowered.
He argued that, given the natural resources that exist in the east of the country, "it is important to find a policy, a percentage of the OGE [general state budget] from revenues from the sale of diamonds, for example, that remains (...) to benefit the people" of the region.
"I think it would be economic justice, considering the levels of poverty in this region of the country," he told Lusa.
UNITA MPs today began visits to several districts in the province of Moxico, mainly to public and private institutions, traditional entities and markets, as part of the parliamentary sessions, which officially begin on Wednesday.
According to Rafael Massanga Savimbi, also spokesperson for his party's sessions, the activities aim to assess the socio-economic situation in the province, especially because "the eastern region is somewhat neglected".
"So we chose the eastern region, and more precisely the province of Moxico, to draw the Government's attention to the need to look at the whole country [and] to reinforce once again our message that we must establish local authorities," he reiterated.
The province of Moxico will also host the main event of the celebrations commemorating the 60th anniversary of the founding of UNITA - founded on 13 March 1966 - which is scheduled for Saturday in Luena. Before that, on Friday, the UNITA leadership will visit the town of Muangai, where the party was founded.
Regarding the 60 years of the party organisation, Massanga (son of the party's founder, Jonas Savimbi) considered that the six-decade journey has not been easy, "marked by ups and downs", but assured that the party currently constitutes a "credible alternative" for change in power.
"At this moment, the common national interest is change, it is to ensure that those in power step aside so that others can emerge, clearly us. And it will be up to us to work to convince Angolans that we are the ones," concluded the politician, declaring his belief in electoral victory in 2027.
DAS/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
