In spite of the financial scandal, the ruling CCM party won an overwhelming victory in local elections in November. This bodes well for its chances in the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for October 1995. Of the 2,418 council wards the CCM took 1,191 unopposed and more than 80% of the others where opposition candidates stood. However, the Electoral Commission had had serious difficulties in registering electors and only about 10% of eligible voters were eventually registered to vote. There was widespread apathy amongst voters, especially in the cities. It has not been possible to obtain all the results but figures from the following regions and districts indicate the massive scale of the CCM victory.
SOME REGIONAL RESULTS:
DAR ES SALAAM
Eleven opposition parties took part in the elections. To the surprise of many observers all seats were won by the CCM. In the case of incumbent Mayor Kitwana Kondo the opposition parties agreed that UDF’s candidate (Abbas Mtemvu, son of Zuberi Mtemvu who was an active anti-TANU politician during the independence struggle) would be the only person to stand against him. However, the CCM steamroller ensured that Mr Kondo would be successful. He got 915 votes to Mr Mtemvu’s 558. Mr Mtemvu subsequently took this issue to court. A verdict is awaited.
IRINGA – NCCR-Mageuzi 1, CCM 13
KIGOMA – CHADEMA 9, CCM 63
ARUSHA – CHADEMA 2, CCM 175
TABORA – Opposition Nil, CCM 132
MTWARA – TADEA 1, CCM 99
KAGERA – CHADEMA 3, NCCR-Mageuzi 3, CCM the rest
KILIMANJARO – CHADEMA 2, CCM 111
A SELECTION OF DISTRICT RESULTS:
UKEREWE – CHADEMA 1, CCM 23
KIBONDO – CHADEMA 3, CCM 10
GEITA – CUF 1, UMD 1, CCM 23
SHINYANGA- UDP 12, CUF 3, CCM 93
MWANZA – UDP 1, CCM 17
MBEYA – CHADEMA 2, CCM 17
MBULU – CHADEMA 1, CCM 8
BUKOBA – CHADEMA 2, NCCR-Mageuzi 2, CCM 36
BARIADI – UMD won 80% of the seats
The CCM won every seat in the DODOMA, LINDI, MWANGA, NGORONGORO, CHUNYA, BIHARAMULO, NGARA, KILOSA, MUFINDI, MULEBA, MTWARA and NJOMBE districts.
Observers believe that the reasons for the CCM victory include the lack of information in remote areas about the essence of multi-party politics and the opposition’s lack of funds. Several donor agencies are funding an electoral education programme which is just beginning. Also, Radio Tanzania, the main source of news, has done little to let people know about opposition activities. There is a widespread feeling that election of opposition parties could lead to chaos in the country and danger to peace and harmony. The CCM is often regarded as the only party with integrity.
The behaviour of the opposition parties has not helped their cause. They are divided against each other and within themselves. There are too many of them – 13 are registered – and efforts to unite as one party – UDETA – have made little progress.
The parties themselves keep falling asunder. The most powerful opposition party in Zanzibar, the CUF, has a major leadership problem. The mainland Chairman has split from the Isles’ Vice-chairman. The latter, Seif Shariff Hamad, has taken over as acting chairman of the party. The UMD is also suffering from quarrels between its leader Chief Fundikira and Christopher Kassanga Tumbo, the Secretary General.
TABORA BY-ELECTION RESULT
More good news for the CCM came when the result of the Tabora parliamentary by-election, held on August 28th, was announced:
CCM (Chama Cha Mapinduzi) 21,736
NLD (National League for Democracy) 2,693
UPDP (United People’s Development Party) 650
NRA (National Reconstruction Alliance) 446
TPP (Tanganyika People’s Party) 323
The CCM obtained 83.13% of the 28,718 votes cast but some 16,598 of the 45,316 people who had registered to vote did not turn up at the polling stations. This result broke the trend of increasing support for opposition parties which had been evident in the first four multi-party by-elections (Bulletin No. 49). A probable explanation lies in the absence from this by-election of the three parties which had received significant support at previous by-elections – CHADEMA, the CUF and NCCR-Mageuzi. The parties were protesting at what they claimed was lack of fairness.
CCM OFFERS SEATS TO THE OPPOSITION
So confident is CCM of winning next year’s elections that President Mwinyi has announced that the next CCM government will give opposition parties able to garner at least 5% of the votes 20% of the seats in Parliament.
ZANZIBAR LEADERS SPEAK
The September issue of ‘Kumekucha’, the publication of DANTAN, the Denmark-Tanzania Society, was devoted almost entirely to Zanzibar and, unusually, was written in English and mostly by one writer, Dan Suther.
Zanzibar President Dr. Salmin Amour was interviewed about the economy. Despite its meagre resources, most of the East- West trunk roads in Unguja and some of the roads in Pemba had been repaired he said. The Northern road was almost 75% completed and the Southern road 60% complete. Speaking about future economic prospects Dr. Amour said that he saw Zanzibar as a supplier of services for rather than a competitor of its neighbouring countries. There would be more trans-shipment of goods from outside destined for East and Central Africa.
On politics Dr. Amour said that the Civic United Front (CUF) represented very strong competition for the CCM. “One of the most confident organisations I have ever come across – they are over-confident” he said. “They claim that we don’t give them media coverage. But the CUF do not want the cooperation of the media. They have quarrelled with newsmen for not attending their meetings. The media is made available to parties during elections but as soon as elections are over the news media become the property of the state, of the government ….. to use as it sees fit”.
Subsequently, in a meeting with British High Commissioner Roger Westbrook, Dr. Amour said that foreign election observers would be welcome during the 1995 elections in the Isles.
The CUF’s Vice-Chairman was also asked about the political situation in the Isles. Seif Shariff Hamad said that should elections be held now CUF would get all 21 seats in Pemba and at least 14 out of 29 in Unguja. But on the mainland none of the opposition parties were strong. CUF would probably get a few seats around Tanga, Mtwara, Lindi, Shinyanga and Tabora but the CCM would win overwhelmingly.
Mr Hamad went on to say that the Union was in a mess today. Tanganyikans were complaining; Zanzibaris were complaining; the only person defending the Union was Nyerere. “We have to have major surgery on the Union” he said. As for the media he said that CUF allowed them to come to their early meetings but got so little subsequent coverage that they were told not to bother to come in future.
CHADEMA and NCCR-Mageuzi have made it clear that they are in favour of a government for Tanganyika.
MAGICAL POWERS?
Commenting on a recent meeting between Mwalimu Nyerere and Seif Sharif Hamad (the topics discussed have not been revealed) the Business Times’ satirist Joe Dotto claimed that quite a few ‘Honourables’ in Tanzania (he was referring particularly to the CCM leadership in Zanzibar) placed a great deal of importance on symbols such as flags, songs, dances and, even walking sticks. Some even believed that Nyerere had magical powers that derived from the Maasai stick he always carried around with him. ‘They are terribly scared of the man’ he wrote.
THE VICE-PRESIDENCY
The issue of the future status and method of election of the Vice-President of the United Republic has been a bone of contention ever since Tanzania opted for multi-party politics. The matter came to a head at the November meeting of Parliament in Dodoma after the cabinets of the Union and Zanzibar had met to resolve the problem. First, the Speaker of the House said that such a meeting had been unconstitutional – the matter should have been discussed by the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament. The CCM had originally decided that the Vice-President would be a running mate of and be chosen by the President of the Union. Zanzibar objected that this could mean that both posts could be filled from the mainland and wanted the present system under which the President and Vice-President must come from different parts of the Union to continue. It was then pointed out that a situation could arise where the President and Vice- President might belong to different parties which would not be practicable. The matter was awaiting resolution as this issue of Tanzanian Affairs went to press – Daily News.