The new extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador of Angola to Guinea-Bissau, Mário Augusto, presented, this Thursday, 22nd, in Bissau, his credentials to the president of that country, Umaro Sissoco Embaló. Such accreditation comes two years after João Lourenço dismissed the then Angolan ambassador to that country, Daniel António Rosa, having been appointed to assume the same functions in Singapore.
In March 2020, the then president-elect of Guinea-Bissau, Sissoco, accused João Lourenço of interfering in his country’s internal affairs, for having received the opposition leader, Domingos Simões Pereira, in Luanda, during the post-presidential election dispute. , 2019, having also criticized the fact that João Lourenço took the children of José Eduardo dos Santos to court.
“Imagine, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, having the son of José Mário Vaz or any member of his family arrested”, said at the time, Sissoco Embaló, quoted by the newspaper A Democrat.
“I am not ungrateful, but my Angolan counterpart is chasing the person who gave him power free of charge. I was elected by the Guinean people. João Lourenço was given the power of ‘tray’ by President José Eduardo Santos, a man who fought for peace in Angola and who deserves respect”, he added, also stating that João Lourenço should “put his hand on his conscience and remember that the president José Eduardo dos Santos gave him everything”.
“The dog does not bite the hand that feeds it, therefore, I am sorry to hear criticism from Angola about the problems of Guinea-Bissau”, said Umaro Sissoco Embaló who also considered Angola as “the most violent country in the 20th and 21st centuries”.
Such statements made the Angolan president withdraw the ambassador of that country, in 2020, having only appointed on October 12, 2022, Mário Augusto, who now takes office.
The diplomat has already assumed the functions of minister-counselor of the Embassy of Angola in Portugal, as well as deputy representative of Angola to the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP).
Graduated in Law, Ambassador Mário Augusto specializes in International Relations and Communication. He is the author of two books, namely “The United Nations in the Context of International Law” (2005) and “The Conflicts and Angolan Experience in Its Resolution” (2019).