From: Concerned Tanzanian Citizen;
To: WRI, WU, EU, International Press, USAID, US Gov, Tanzanian Diaspora;
Date: 28 January, 2019
Dear all,
Greetings from Tanzania-the land of Kilimanjaro, Serengeti, Ngorogoro, Zanzibar and above all, the land of great peace, transformation and reforms under President John Pombe Magufuli.
I have leant that your various institutions will, in the course of this week and beyond, accommodate the opposition lawmaker from Tanzania, Tundu Lissu, to speak about diverse issues on politics in Tanzania. Unfortunately the power thirsty politician will not tell you all you need to know.
In my first open letter to you, I will focus into 5 truths that this MP will hide to you, and in the second, I will dwell into major transformations happening in Tanzania, that again, MP Lissu cannot dare a mention to you.
Attack on His Life and Ensuing Propaganda
The MP will obviously reminisce on the unfortunate attack on his life, but he will hide to you that he and his party are now turning the tragedy into a propaganda tool. The MP who has just got out of hospital bed after a year-long treatment, and not to go back home to join with family that has missed him the most, was gunned down by unknown criminals near his residence in the country’s political Capital of Dodoma on 17th September, 2017.
Such unlikely events are rare in the peaceful Tanzanian but do happen in any country. It was no wonder that on the same fateful day, in Dar es Salaam city, a retired high ranking army officer was also attacked by unknown gunmen and sustained injuries too. First President of Zanzibar was assassinated in 1972. I insist, the MP is not the first and the only one.
The President of the United Republic of Tanzania issued a statement to condemn the uncivilized crime and ordered thorough investigation. The President sent Vice President, former President and other senior government leaders to visit Hon. Lissu in hospital, some in Dodoma and others in Nairobi.
It is very regrettable that the MP would obviously use your platforms to returns insults to all these people who stood, wished him well and prayed for him. We call upon all global citizens to denounce his ill-motives.
Alleged Failure to Investigate the Culprits
In your fora, just as he tried to lie before cameras on BBC HardTalk, MP Lissu will obviously point fingers on investigators and government handling of his matter. Good that the BBC HardTalk interviewer openly rejected his propaganda and unsubstantiated claims.
It is important that you keep cool during your session with him; his sanity need to be tolerated. Lest he forget, like in many other incidents, investigations started immediately after the incident but in such crimes, key eye-witnesses, are important for effective investigations, leading to successful prosecution.
Tundu Lissu's mysterious driver is nowhere to be traced for investigations
Until now, law enforcers have been imploring the cooperation of the MP and his driver who escaped unhurt, to volunteer an account of eye witnessing into the crime but in vain. They lost resources and time to save him notice in Nairobi he turned down. His driver is now nowhere to be seen. What are these two key witnesses hiding?
Investigators in Tanzania are still keen and waiting for the MP and his driver, the only two impeccable eyewitnesses, to change their upsetting reluctance and cooperate. He will narrate to you his ordeal but he has been reluctant to do so to investigators. Again, this is why I restate; assess his sanity.
On His Treatment
On BBC HardTalk he talked about the President’s failure to finance his treatment. First of all, this is not a matter to be dealt by the President but Parliamentary procedures. The President finances no one to have treatment but Parliamentary or Government procedures.
Everyone who is keen to follow on these issues will see unashamed lies by the MP. As soon as he was attacked, the MP was rushed to the Government Hospital in Dodoma; it was the Government experts and officials that ensured he receives emergency treatment to sustain his life and was never asked to pay for anything prior to his party’s choice for treatment outside Tanzania.
As it is for all Governments all over the world, referrals for further treatments outside the country, require necessary preparations and procedures that every even top government leaders (including Presidents, Prime Ministers, former Presidents, Ministers, MPs) to common needy citizens must undertake. Hon. Lissu and his party leaders chose not to abide by the procedures that include as simple as a requirement to obtain referral certificate from the country’s Apex Hospital.
Common citizens including MPs from Hon. Lissu’s own party have adhered to the same procedures for years and got the much needed assistance. It is unfortunate that the same MP who now goes around the world pretending to advocate for rule of law, is the same one who wants laws and procedures to be breached to suit his personal favour!
The law abiding Government of Tanzania, I’m sure, will never allow selective application of laws and set procedures among its citizens. No keen government anywhere will do what the MP wants; selective preference.
On Democracy
He will raise to you issues of democracy and rule of law, I wish to reiterate that Tanzania is naturally democratic. Since independence to-date, the country is actively practicing rule of law, expanding its democracy and unwavering commitment to human rights, by among others, acceding and subscribing to international as well as regional human rights instruments.
Since 1992 the country remains among few countries in Africa that embraced and continues to enjoy peaceful multi-party democracy. The fact that MP Lissu himself is a Member of Parliament in Tanzania from the opposition camp, speaks loud to how far the country is democratic.
Furthermore, he won’t mention, but just know that MP Lissu’s own victory was challenged in court by a ruling party candidate and he still won. What a petty dictatorship country, as he always defames his own leaders in Tanzania, will allow that?
Tanzania is a country with its own history; MP Lissu’s party used to organize violent demonstrations that caused deaths of innocent people across Tanzania. Learning from the blood demos, the government learnt a lesson in a bid to save lives.
It moved to restrict politicians to organize indefinite political rallies but do so in their own constituencies. Many opposition MPs are doing that, until his fateful event MP Lissu has never visited his constituency to exercise this freedom. He will still demand more political space!
He will mention six cases filed against him, but he will not talk about his frequent breach of the national laws to include but not limited to use of abusive languages against national leaders without sparing Father of the National, the late Mwalimu Nyerere, making public inflammatory statements and defamation.
He will demand accountability but will never tell you his own national party chairman has rejected anyone to contest for the post, stayed beyond the constitutional limit, and more to that Mr. Lissu will not tell you that an assistant to his party got a car accident after unveiling plans to vie for the post. Recently, a security assistant of the Chair was found dead after defecting from Lissu’s party to initiate demands for his unpaid arrears.
The MP will just keep insisting there is no democracy in Tanzania. He will never cite any data to you. I will give you few. The current data from a 38-nation Pew Research has recently revealed that Tanzania is a leading democratic country in Africa ahead of Kenya and Ghana. The data also puts Tanzania in the same level with India and Sweden in terms of democracy.
The survey 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 President Magufuli.
The data states that: “Trust in the national government is highest in Tanzania. About 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,” states the research.
On Press Freedom
The President is also an engineer of press freedom where more than 200 print news outlets and over 180 radio and Television stations are operating in the country. Social media networks are blossoming up. But, like in the US, EU and anywhere, all the media are supposed to work within the legal frame work.
The MP will just keep exaggerating that newspapers are banned; this is so anywhere if laws and media ethics are breached. The very few banned and returned into reprint are according to the law not personal wants. But he will never tell you those newspapers on the tragidy end are only below 1 percent (4 print editions out of over 200).
He will never tell you that it is under President John Magufuli that section 52(2) of the Media Services Act, 2016 was introduced, declaring, for the first time ever, that it is not an offence for anyone to criticise the government. No any journalist is in jail or in prison or even in court in Tanzania because of publishing or airing critical news in Tanzania as we speak.
I understand there are many things the MP will lie to you, just be alert he is in dire need to stir violence in Tanzania for his personal and political violence. That notwithstanding, there are good things too that the MP will never tell you about Tanzania. My second letter will therefore focus on 10 major good things MP Lissu won’t tell you about Magufuli and Tanzania.
Stay blessed.
FIVE THINGS MP LISSU IS LYING TO THE WORLD; AN OPEN LETTER
