The decision by Chadema’s central Committee (CC) to
strip its three stalwarts of their duties except their party’s membership has
met criticism and objection from various stakeholders in political circles,
some warning the party to read the writings of the wall. Those who spoke to the
Guardian on Sunday newspaper yesterday said unless the party puts its house in
order it will meet the same ordeal that NCCR-Mageuzi and Tanzania Labour Party
(TLP) encountered after the first multiparty general elections in 1995. While
NCCR-Mageuzi became the major opposition party after the 1995 elections the
party did not survive as it collapsed in early 2000 after a leadership conflict
emerged between camps led by the then its Chairman Augustine Mrema and
Secretary General Mabere Marando. Mrema is now leading TLP as its Chairman while
Marando defected to Chadema where he is serving as an advisor in legal affairs
to the party. The same problem engulfed TLP later on and currently the party
seems not to be existing as its members are no longer united. Renowned
political analyst and senior lecturer of the political science has predicted
that, Chadema’s move is likely to weaken party’s political movements in the
country. Speaking in a telephone interview last week in Dar es Salaam, Dr.
Benson Bana of the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) said that, Chadema as a
party was supposed to conduct an in-depth investigation and find out the truth
on the allegations leveled against their leaders. He said the party’s central
committee members would not have reached to such a strong decision bearing in
mind the fact that among the culprits, the deputy secretary general for
Tanzania mainland Zitto Kabwe is a popular politician who in recent years has
contributed a lot to the well being of his party. However, he noted that, steps
taken by the party’s central committee are mere game of chance which in his
predictions would cause a negative perception afterwards to other members who
might have not become happy with their party’s decision. However, he said
conflicts among the members themselves within the party is a normal thing and
which cannot be avoided, but the only thing to think about the matter was
democracy of settling issues, added that striping their posts was not a
solution. He also noted that, the decision might have been planned either to
kill the political philosophy of the three leaders whom he described were the
core centre irrespective of their position within the party’s leadership and
entire jurisdiction. Another political analyst, Dr. Azaveli Lwaitama said in a
telephone interview that, “ the decision by Chadema of striping its leaders
should not sound a new phenomenon in the political arena in the country”. He
said that although it was too early to rule out the allegations against their
leaders, but fear of intimidation might arise among members themselves bearing
the fact that, not all members of the party’s central committee had a common
decision to uphold with the move as stipulated in their constitution.
He said
as the Chadema party was coming up with strong opposition ideas against their rivals
the ruling CCM party, then it had shown strong commitments in dealing with
national issues. In view of this, he s aid the arising conflicts within the party
should not be a prerequisite of making such a harsh decision. Dr. Lwaitama,
former UDSM senior lecturer is on the view of the fact that, the well-known of
the young politician Zitto Kabwe might have some grudge with other fellow
members whom he said might not be in trust with him and take him as a traitor. However,
he gave an example during the time when the father of the nation, the late
Mwalimu Julius Nyerere was fighting for the freedom of Tanganyikans in late
1950s, he experienced strong opposition from fellow Africans such as the late
Zuberi Mtemvu who formed a strong resistance with his party in a bid to snatch
powers of the sovereignty. He also noted the former TANU secretary General the
late Oscar Kambona who went against Mwalimu’s wish when he introduced the idea
of establishing a socialist state and eventually fled the country and lived in
exile for over 30 years in Europe. All these he said are political struggles
and politics is about the battle, he said adding that, for Chadema party they
should have calmed down themselves and settle their issues silently without
exposing out their clues as political disputes are normal thing in any
democratic country. “It is not surprising to see what has happened as in any
party, there are so many problems emanating and are solved silently”, he said
and gave an example of the ruling party which is engulfed with numerous problems
but do not expose them openly, but rather are solved amicably. Last week most
newspapers bore headlines on the precedence of their front pages the Chadema’s
decision to strip its leaders of all their leadership positions after a lengthy
meeting on Friday night by the opposition party’s Central Committee meeting. These
are the Kigoma North MP Zitto Kabwe, a
member of central committee Dr. Kitila Mkumbo and Arusha Chairman Samson
Mwigamba. Their announcement was officially confirmed by the party’s lawyer Mr
Tundu Lissu at a hushed press conference which was also attended by national
chairman Freeman Mbowe and Secretary General Wilbrod Slaa. The move blamed on
an alleged plot by Zitto and close confidants to wreck the party, which
immediately drew widespread debate across the country and on the social media
networks, is likely to test the opposition party’s unity and strength in
the days to come, especially in the light of the next general elections
which are about two years away. It has also left Zitto whose political
career has been on the rise since joining the opposition ranks in unfamiliar
deep waters of party politics, with some of his confidants and supporters
uncertain of his next course of action. The Kigoma North MP has recently
been on cross hairs of some party bigwigs and yesterday declined to say much on
the announcement, that for the first time dealt him a major setback in his
self-declared interest to lead Chadema and run for the country’s presidency. Efforts
to reach the three comments yesterday proved futile although their party has
given them fourteen days to explain in
writing why they should not be expelled away from party’s membership.
No comments:
Post a Comment