The Angolan police are using tear gas to disperse a riot near the Santa Ana cemetery, where the Kudurist musician “Nagrelha” will be buried today.
Funeral ceremonies for the musician, who died on Friday, attracted a crowd of thousands of Angolans in what will be the biggest funeral ever in Luanda.
This morning there were still hundreds of people at the Estádio da Cidadela, where the tributes took place, and from where a procession left on foot, in candongueiros and with thousands of motorcyclists towards the Santa Ana cemetery.
The large concentration of people led the police to intervene, and shots were heard, since despite having mobilized 800 agents, the police had difficulty in controlling the large crowds.
The release of tear gas caused a stampede and fainting, with several people falling to the ground.
Throughout the procession, young people could be heard crying and shouting “son of Zedu”, a reference to former Angolan President José Eduardo dos Santos. Many held several signs and there were those who shouted “‘Nagrelha’ President, João Lourenço head of State”.
The Angolan police announced that they had mobilized 800 agents to ensure the wake, procession and funeral of the Kudurista.
Gelson Caio Manuel Mendes, better known as “Nagrelha”, the most famous singer of the kuduro musical style, died at the age of 36 in Luanda from lung cancer, according to the D. Alexandre do Nascimento Hospitalar for Cardiovascular Diseases Complex, where he was staying. admitted.
The provincial deputy governor for the Political and Social sector, Manuel Gonçalves, on Sunday appealed to all citizens and to Kuduristas, in particular, to maintain serenity, in order to maintain public order and avoid disturbances.
For security reasons, the cemetery is closed and exclusively reserved for the funeral of “Nagrelha”.
The Secretariat of the Political Bureau of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), a party in whose rallies the artist regularly participated, left a message of condolences, praising the unique and incomparable way of being of “Nagrelha”, which inspired and mobilized many artists to adhere to the kuduro style.
For the MPLA, the musician stood out as one of the most charismatic members of the musical group Os Lambas, responsible for introducing a new paradigm in the kuduro musical style, marked by compositions with appreciable rhyme and high creative capacity, which catapulted the group to the next level. of the best in the style in reference.
The parliamentary group of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), the main Angolan opposition party, also addressed wishes of condolence to family, friends, fans and the Ministry of Culture, considering “Nagrelha” as an icon of popular music, especially Angolan youth.
“Talking about the death of ‘Nagrelha’ is talking about a pain that pierces the hearts of thousands of young and adult Angolan kuduro lovers”, he said in a statement.
“Charismatic, creative and eccentric, a son of the people and one of the symbols of youth that is not resigned to social and economic difficulties, ‘Nagrelha’ leaves a great musical repertoire that immortalizes him and keeps him present in the cultural memory of Angola”, stressed the UNITA.
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