President Jakaya Kikwete's government was yesterday challenged to urgently find lasting solutions to the many problems facing the country.The government might find itself facing mass demonstrations like those in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, Chadema secretary-general Willibrod Slaa warned in Mwanza. Addressing a rally at Furahisha grounds last evening, he said the chaos in Tunisia had been sparked by hardships the people were experiencing.
"The situation in Tunisia and Egypt is not different from what is happening in Tanzania, where life has become unbearably tough... what happened there could also happen here if solutions to problems are not found immediately," Dr Slaa told a huge rally preceded by a peaceful demonstration.
He gave the government nine days to address the problems and remove all unnecessary levies, otherwise, he warned, what happened in Tunisia and Egypt might happen in the country as well.
"The Tunisia and Egypt revolts were a result of hardships that wananchi have been facing...we are experiencing the same situation here. Life is very hard," he said.
He warned that if the government did not act quickly, "it might have to face people's power in a few days' time".
He said some people continued to cling to their posts while the economy was bleeding and they seemed not to have any solution at hand.
The Chadema national chairman, Mr Freeman Mbowe, galvanised the rally when he asked how many people were ready for mass action like Tunisia and Egypt, only to have the crowd raising their hands.
He said should they finish their tour of Lake Zone in nine days without tangible steps from the government to address the problems, Chadema was going to push for mass action like in Tunisia and Egypt.
He told the rally that the recent changes in parliamentary regulations had been engineered by the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) and opposition Civic United Front (CUF) to weaken Chadema, "but they will not succeed."
He asked the Police Force and other state organs to understand that what Chadema was fighting for included their welfare as they were part of an oppressed society.
In reference to last week's Gongo la Mboto explosions at an army base which killed at least 26 people and injured hundreds others, Mr Mbowe said: "We are tired of being killed occasionally. From here I want us to come with a strong statement calling for the resignation of Dr (Hussein) Mwinyi (the minister for Defence and National Service)."
Dr Slaa began his speech by thanking the residents of Mwanza for making Chadema "the ruling party in the city". The Mwanza city mayorship is under Chadema. The party won two important constituencies of Ilemela and Nyamagana in last year's General Election.
On reports that Mwanza residents were unhappy with the mayor, Dr Slaa warned all councillors in all councils led by Chadema that they should perform their duties "appropriately so as to be different from CCM".He told the mayor he said: "You have heard the voice of the people who have elected you. It is your duty to do what they want...you were elected to serve them."
He chided CCM for describing people participating in Chadema demos and rallies as "bhang smokers", saying they were also Tanzanians and should not be ridiculed.
On the ongoing crippling power problems, Dr Slaa accused the government of failing to handle the issue properly. He said people had been wasting a lot of time discussing about owners of Dowans, while the International Commercial Court's ruling clearly indicated that a CCM politician had been given power of attorney to supervise Dowans affairs.
"President Kikwete has said that he doesn't know the owners of Dowans which took over the contract from Richmond. He should also tell us why he doesn't know an investor whose contract was blessed by a cabinet meeting which he chaired," he said.
Activities in most of Mwanza came to a standstill yesterday afternoon as people took part in a peaceful demonstration organised by Chadema.The demonstration was led by Mr Mbowe, who is also leader of official opposition in the Parliament. He was flanked by Dr Slaa and almost all Chadema MPs.
There were only few uniformed policemen and Chadema's Red Brigade took charge of security during the demonstrations and at the rally.
The demonstration started at around 1pm at Buzuruga primary school and went through Musoma, Pamba, Kenyata and Makongoro roads before it climaxed at Furahisha grounds at around 3.45pm.Addressing the rally earlier, the Kawe MP, Ms Halima Mdee, urged Tanzanians to shun fear and confront the government when it does not deliver.
"It took a young man who set himself on fire to overthrow corrupt governments in Tunisia and Egypt. Time to fear is long gone," she said.
For his part, Ubungo MP and shadow minister for Energy and Minerals John Mnyika said the time had come for all major contracts to be scrutinised by Parliament before the government executives append their signatures.But the rally booed Mwanza Mayor Josephat Nyerere, alleging he had agreed with the city director, Mr Wilson Kabwe, to remove street vendors from the central business district.
The Ilemela MP, Highness Kiwia, chided CCM for challenging his victory in court on the grounds that he used abusive language and bought voter cards. He said he was sure of wining again even if "the election is repeated today".
He insisted that Arusha had no mayor because the election of the current mayor was flawed.
Original date published: 24 February 2011
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