... As we expected - and nothing more could be expected - we observed that a left-wing group had carried out a coup. They had seized power through guerrilla operations or a regular military move. They had replaced those who previously held the position. The palace in which Samora Machel the revolutionary leader of Mozambique - who was later on assassinated - lived was the same palace inhabited by the previous Portuguese ruler of the country. He received me in the same palace, and I saw that the situation was no different than in the past. I was staring at a carpet laid on the floor. "This is one of the carpets left from the time of the Portuguese" he said. I realized that not only did they live in the same palace and in the same luxury, but also they led the same lifestyle. It was as if these people were not at all a revolutionary and populist group. In fact, they were not. You could not find any sign of the general public there. When I entered the guest room, I saw two men standing at the big door which led to the reception room. They were exactly like the legendary slaves who served at the court of sultans. The Portuguese ruler had been living the life of legendary sultans. There were really two black men there. These two were black, but they were not real slaves because the ruler himself was from the same social background. Those two men were wearing uniforms and standing at the door like slaves. They had been ordered to open the door in way that when the sultan - namely the revolutionary leader - and his guest (me) reached the door, both panes of it opened together as the two were bowing. I looked at them with a smile on my face. Then we entered the guest room with the host - who had the same gestures as the previous Portuguese ruler.
(Related in meeting with Friday prayer leaders on May 15, 1990)