President Filipe Nyusi says he has ordered an investigation into Sunday’s arson attack on the offices of a privately owned investigative newspaper based in the capital Maputo.
According to the Mozambique chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), unknown individuals broke into the offices of the newspaper “and put in two 20-litre fuel drums and then set fire before leaving the site.”
In a statement on Monday night, Nyusi condemned the attack on the offices of Canal de Moçambique that left the newsroom and other facilities severely damaged.
“We have instructed the authorities to investigate and bring the perpetrators to justice,” Nyusi said in the statement posted on his Facebook page.
He pledged his government’s support for freedom of the press, noting that “freedom of the press is a pillar of democracy that must be protected.”
Government critics have, however, linked the attack to the newspaper’s investigation into alleged corruption among top Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy officials, which was published last week.
The ministry was forced to suspend a fuel marketing deal following the investigation by the newspaper.
JN/APA