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Friday, 06 January 2012 21:17 |
By Ray Naluyaga The Citizen Bureau Chief Mwanza. A Mwanza lawyer has filed a petition with the Special Constitutional Court of Tanzania, challenging the Zanzibar Constitution, which was amended in 2010. Mr Stephen Magoiga has asked the court to declare as null and void four matters enshrined in the Zanzibar Constitution of 1984, as amended in 2010, and has named the Attorney General of the United Republic of Tanzania and the Attorney General of Zanzibar as the respondents. The contentious areas include the provisions of Section 2A of the Constitution of Zanzibar, which empower the Isles President to divide Zanzibar into regions, districts and other administrative areas without consulting the Union President. In his petition, Mr Magoiga argues that the application and operation of the provisions of section 2A of the Constitution of Zanzibar of 1984 "grossly contravenes the provisions of Article 2(2) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania of 1977". He says the provision is unconstitutional as it gives the Zanzibar President powers that the Union President does not have, adding that the President of the United Republic of Tanzania is compelled by the Constitution to consult on the formation of new administrative areas. He further argues that the application and operation of the provisions of section 26(1) of the Constitution of Zanzibar of 1984 grossly breaches the provisions of Article 33(2) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania. Mr Magoiga says the provision should equally be declared null and void because it now provides the United Republic of Tanzania with two heads of state, contrary to union matters number 1, 2 and 3 as provided for in the first schedule of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania. "The said provisions are unconstitutional and abrogate the provisions of Article 34(1) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, for when it comes to foreign matters there cannot exist two states but one state – The United Republic of Tanzania." Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Union provide the Constitution of Tanzania and the government of the United Republic of Tanzania, Foreign Affairs and defence as Union matters listed in the first schedule of the said Constitution. He also says in his petition that Section 24(3) of the Constitution of Zanzibar is unconstitutional and violates the provisions of Article 117(3) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania. "The provision bars the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania from determining any appeal, including human and basic rights, emanating from Zanzibar while under paragraph 21 of the first schedule of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, the Court of Appeal is a Union matter." Mr Magoiga adds that all matters of human and basic rights, both at national and international levels, are vested in the United Republic of Tanzania government as a ratifying state. On the fourth matter, Mr Mogoiga challenges the application and operation of the provisions of Section 121(1),(2) and (3) of the Constitution of Zanzibar as they violate Article 147(2) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania. He says the provision exclusively empowers the United Republic of Tanzania government to establish and maintain forces of various types. "By the Zanzibar Constitution raising and maintaining these forces such as KMKM, Jeshi la Kujenga Uchumi and others is against the union matter number 3," he says. In his petition, he questions who is the Commander in Chief of these established forces outside the known forces in the United Republic of Tanzania Constitution? "This is an imperative question in this petition," he adds. |