The approval of the law was only possible after an interruption of the session in the Assembly of the Republic for a "consultation" meeting between the leaders of the benches of the three parliamentary parties, who disagreed on the subject.

This is the proposal for the revision of Law No. 14/2014 of August 14, which approves the "Organization, Operation and Process of the Public Accounts Section".

The Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo), the ruling party, understood that there was no need to include the central bank in the list of institutions audited by the TA and the opposition parties, Renamo and MDM, defended the inclusion of the regulator.

"Regarding the supervision of the Bank of Mozambique by the Administrative Court, we understand that this claim does not fall within the scope of the application of this law due to its nature, specificity and the need to preserve its independence and autonomy", said Marna Chibuco, a Frelimo deputy.

For the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo), the largest opposition party, and the Democratic Movement of Mozambique (MDM), the third parliamentary force, the approval of the law without the inclusion of the central bank would be a violation of the Constitution.

"The strange fact that is not understood is the denial of this bank being supervised by the TA, going against the constitutional provision on the supervision of all State money", said Arnaldo Chalaua, a Renamo deputy.

"The central bank must be subject to audit by the TA", stressed Fernando Bismarques, a MDM deputy.

The session was interrupted for almost 30 minutes for consultation between the leaders of the benches and, later, the law was approved by consensus.

On Wednesday, the Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) Public Integrity Center (CIP) accused the Government of trying to "restrict the powers of the Administrative Court in the supervision of public accounts".

"The proposal to exclude the Bank of Mozambique from the TA's supervision is unconstitutional and problematic, since the TA's supervision is crucial to ensure that the Mozambican central bank operates in accordance with the established laws and regulations, in order to prevent corruption and abuse of power", defended the CIP in a statement.

For the NGO, the supervision of the central bank falls within the TA's role of supervising public funds, citing the provisions of article 229 of the Constitution of the Republic of Mozambique.

In addition to the central bank, the list of public institutions to be audited by the TA also includes the Presidency, the Assembly of the Republic, the Constitutional Council, the Ombudsman's Office and the courts, as well as decentralized government bodies.

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