350. It is also noted that the appointment of judges is politically biased and therefore compromises their independence. The current President of the Supreme Court, Mario Mangaze, has held this position since it was first implemented in 1988. In April 2004, his reappointment was opposed in the Assembly of the Republic by RENAMO Members of Parliament (MPs), on the grounds that he had held office for such a lengthy period. Despite objections from some MPs, the President of the Republic was still able to obtain a majority vote to ratify his appointment for the Presidency and Vice-Presidency of the Supreme Court in 2004 successfully, as he has been able to do since the inception of the court. 351. The President of the Supreme Court is automatically appointed as President of the CSMJ. This council plays a central role in the appointment of judges to the judicial courts. Considering that the President and Vice-President of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President of the Republic, and that the ruling party also has a majority in the Assembly of the Republic, the President and his party could arguably exert influence over a considerable number of appointments to the Higher Council. Level of Independence of the Legislature 352. As mentioned above, the Constitution gives a dominant position to the Executive, embodied by the President and the Council of Ministries. FRELIMO’s comfortable majority in the Legislature has contributed to the weakening of the General Assembly vis-à-vis the Executive. Significant key legislation has been passed without the participation of RENAMO MPs, who declined to vote on the laws, arguably due to FRELIMO’s clear intention of ignoring the arguments brought by the opposition during the discussion of the law. 353. The Legislature and Judiciary suffer from a lack of capacity and low levels of public confidence as a result of the greater power vested in the President and the Executive. Consequently, the application of the principle of separation of powers and the autonomy of the different branches of government is ineffectual. The current political practice in Mozambique also favours a blurring of the distinction between the ruling party, the government and the state. 354. The General Assembly sits part-time and has a limited number of days for doing oversight functions. Members of the General Assembly reported that its legislative work is done within three months (two sessions of a maximum of 45 days each), a maximum of 35 days for constituency work and 15–25 days for oversight functions during which members are paid. For the remaining seven months of the year, members have to fend for themselves. FRELIMO members of the General Assembly survive better because they are appointed to boards and commissions where they earn an additional income, but no so the opposition members. The 15–25 days in the year allocated for doing oversight functions are grossly inadequate. 129