Tanzania: Stolen election or Stolen Opposition Parties? A Reply to MP Zitto Kabwe’s Fallacies
By Dr. Darius Mukiza, DAR ES SALAAM – The Daily Maverick newspaper on December 3rd, 2019 published an article titled thus: “Tanzania’s stolen civic elections: An urgent call to action”.
The article that leaves a lot of questions to be asked and answered, but simply politically calculated to tarnish the image of our country, Tanzania, seems to have been written, edited somewhere and published by a Tanzanian Zitto Kabwe, Opposition MP.
Zitto’s article uses the just 2019 ended local elections in Tanzania as a case study to build his accusations on Tanzania’s democracy.
In the article, whilst the original and ultimate intention is contentious; the MP seems to get struck in the horns of a dilemma as he turns from one argument to the other but ultimately to unveil his sinister plans to destabilize the peace we already enjoy in Tanzania.
To start with the democracy demagogue; It is not enough to use the just ended local elections to conclude that there is no democracy in Tanzania. Election is one of the pillars of democracy among many others.
Democracy is just one tool or political system towards achieving a country’s vision and it is measured against more than 30 variables, if one needs to be pragmatist enough to evaluate a country, contrary to the openly frustrated MP Zitto.
That’s why, empirically, Tanzania is ranked high on many fronts due to its own unique democracy and progress made.
For instance, the 2017 findings from a 38-nation US based Pew Research conducted among 41,953 respondents in 38 countries, from Feb. 16 to May 8, 2017 across the world using telephone and face-to-face interviews found that 88 percent of Tanzanians are satisfied with the way democracy is working in the country under the leadership of current President Dr. John Pombe Magufuli.
According to the Research, nine-in-ten people in Tanzania (89%), trust their government to do what is right for their country, including 48% who say they have “a lot” of trust.
The study, placing Tanzania ahead of Kenya and Ghana in terms of democracy in Africa, focused on how countries around the world view democracy, military and other political systems and defined satisfaction as the way democracy was working in Tanzania to be tied to how people see the past and the future.
It should be noted that since 1992, Tanzania remains to be among the few countries in Africa that embraces and continues to enjoy peaceful multi-party democracy with elections after every 5 years.
The fact that MP Zitto himself is a Member of Parliament in Tanzania from an opposition camp, speaks loud on how far the country is democratic.
In terms of peace, Tanzania is still peaceful than many countries in the world. Only politically motivated disorders and disobediences that people like MP Zitto are currently praying for can disrupt our peace to violence.
Through reading Zitto’s article, one can understand that some politicians in the country are in the process of destabilising the peace we have in Tanzania. They are not happy with our peace and are ready to work with other agents to destabilize it.
For example, in one of his paragraphs, the MP champions: “resistance through civil disobedience, well-organised mass protests in the streets of major parties and non-stop sit-ins until Parliament enacts legislation that ensures a free and fair election on the Tanzania mainland and in Zanzibar.”
Considering the massive socio and economic transformations happening in Tanzania under current government, this is one of the gravest statements to be made by someone who wants to cling to power in a country once stricken by corruption but now cleansing is on.
Let me remind the MP that power and self-interest should not override those of the rest of peaceful Tanzanians who re now enjoying the fruits of being free as their elected and appointed leaders are working 24/7 to transform the country.
Contrary to his call for violence to destroy peace in Tanzania, the world wants this peace to continue and Tanzanians do too. The 2018 Global Peace Index Report (GPI) released by The Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) has ranked Tanzania the ninth in Africa and first in East Africa in the list of peaceful independent countries.
Worldwide, Tanzania is tanked the 51st peaceful country among 163 independent countries whipping out major world economic powers like the US, China, UK and Argentina.
The question is: Why should some few individuals/politicians disrupt our peace through call for protests, demonstrations which always turns violent and have caused massive destructions of economies and societies like what has befell Libya today?
I have some pointers to add on why opposition members like Zitto Kabwe are frustrated in Tanzania today?
I argue it is not actually stealing from them, but them stealing from the wishes of Tanzanians and stealing from their own parties by frustrating democracy and political agenda within.
Several other massive actions in Tanzania are not making them opposition any happy because they feel like they are having their manipulation agenda stolen.
- The War on Corruption
President Magufuli of Tanzania has vigorously tackled corruption from its roots to the branches. The war has left many causalities both in the public and private sector, including within political parties.
It is understood that whilst some opposition parties were benefitting from the corruption network; dividends from friends, supporters and corrupt public entities, under Magufuli that is history, and people are really starved.
MP Zitto is one of those directly mentioned by audit reports to have benefitted in a way from some public entities when situation was so loose prior to the reform minded Magufuli administration. He is on record and cannot denounce these allegations.
While what Magufuli is doing is causing lots of panic among status quo beneficiaries-unfortunately, the reactionary strategies have been to mudsling and tarnish the image of the country. This is fruitless.
Tanzania’s anti-graft war is already showing massive results for the benefits of the impoverished masses.
First, the country is receiving recognition from international fronts. A July 2019 Transparency International and Afro Barometer report has ranked Tanzania the first in Africa in an index that measured success in corruption tackling among selected African countries.
Second, the government is today able to deliver massive pro-people and economy boosting projects through its own taxpayers’ money; the ailing education system now receives funds for free education, loans for higher learning education are out in time.
The health system has received new buildings, equipment and now patients from neighbouring countries no longer fly to Europe but to Tanzania for specialised treatments like heart surgery, cochlear implants, kidney transplants and cancer diagnosis and treatments.
The defunct Air Tanzania is aggressively back, rocking the skies with seven new planes, a fleet that includes two Boeing Dreamliners and two Airbuses.
As we speak, Tanzania is investing money on Africa’s biggest rail project, the $3.2m Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) and Africa’s fourth largest hydropower project, the $ 2.9m Nyerere Hydropower project.
These are areas of complains the oppositions were making loud on the air in the past demanding for action, the current regime has addressed. Is it another tale of frustration for stolen agenda?
- The War on Natural Resources
To understand why Tanzanian politicians like Zitto Kabwe are really frustrated, one has to analyse the mining curse in Tanzania.
The country, endowed with all what you know and don’t know in the extractive industry, was getting poor and poor, and as Walter Rodney prophesied in his masterpiece “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa” what was left to Tanzanians were pits full of rain water for animal grazing!
Many Tanzanian young men and women became fond of MP Zitto Kabwe of the past (I am convinced if the two meet today, none of us will be able to prevent the fight).
MP Kabwe challenged how the mining companies were benefitting Tanzania and he became famous for that. When Magufuli came into power in late 2015 he worked along those arguments to challenge the status quo.
In two years, he raised revenues from the mining sector from below $80m per annum to a staggering $160m per annum by implementing measures to prevent mineral losses and tax payments. He tackled the giant Barrick with a huge tax invoice and as we speak Barrick has bowed down and agreed to share with the government of Tanzania in a 50/50 arrangement.
These reforms are shockingly not making MP Zitto any happy. After his fierce protest against mining giants he later on turned into a darling of Gold giants like Barrick/Acacia, and he was on record to have benefitted from some of them; not big but at least a share from corporate social responsibility to help the MP with some projects at his constituency.
No wonder that today, and recently, the MP who wants Tanzanians to act violently, is seating on the same seat with giant mineral companies, opposing steps that the government is taking for the benefits of the people. These, I argue, are the stolen political parties that may not convenience any keen Tanzanians to engage in violence.
- Political Parties and Politics of Belonging
One weakness that MP Zitto will not directly discuss is the failure of the opposition front itself. Most of the opposition parties are investing in politics of belonging than politics that address issues of the masses or join the masses on their issues.
As an analyst, I would argue that this is the point of differentiation between opposition parties in Tanzania and the always stable ruling party, CCM.
That is why, in the article, the MP is lamenting for failing to secure support of inciting violence from his fellow opposition leaders. He says:
“Many people in the top leadership of the opposition argue that Tanzanians are not ready for this kind of resistance. I argue that the opposition leaders are the ones who are not ready because we have things to lose. Things like our posts in parliament, time with families when we spend months in jail and other material items.” Logically, the MP thinks he is intelligent enough than other fellow opposition leaders. Politics of belonging.
The opposition party in Tanzania should blame its own foundation and direction. They don’t trust each other, never united even on national and peoples’ issues. And they don’t have strategies.
MP Zitto before his current party had defected from the main opposition party, Chadema, where he was branded as a traitor, and in turn he blamed his former bosses for plans to assassinate him. These are the opposition parties in Tanzania today!
In his new party, ACT Wazalendo, voices are silenced, he is the main political thinker, the unchallenged leader, the Ayatollah of the party, but again, he weakens other political parties through luring their leaders and cadres.
Most of the oppositions political activities are urban centred and parochial in philosophy and are based on special media than really grass roots engagements.
The just ended local government elections, unlike the general blame on the government, was a manifestation that opposition parties were not ready; they boycotted to sensitize their supporters to register for the election, yet they anticipated victory.
They went to the local elections while most of their parties had not conducted their internal elections, yet, they anticipated wonders.
Most of the opposition candidates were ill-prepared to participate, failed to properly follow election regulations. When a general mercy was issued that all those who were preliminarily barred on such mistakes should participate in the elections, several political parties including Zitto’s boycotted, but others participated.
Contrary to the MPs assertions, I argue, it is fallacious to blame the government on every failure of the opposition in Tanzania, the opposition parties may wish to look themselves on the mirror and see where the dots are and work hard to remove them.
Finally, let it be a call to all Tanzanians, political parties, Non- Governmental organisations, and other stakeholders that their stay in Tanzania either by citizenship or responsibilities depends on peace we have.
Let us not accept to destabilise our development and peaceful atmosphere but seek peaceful solutions in the events of any challenge we have. I denounce violence, please do, whether it’s coming from your party leader or government leader, denounce it.
*Dr. Darius Mukiza is an expert in political communication based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania*
