DaudiAiko
JF-Expert Member
- Dec 2, 2012
- 302
- 274
- The foundations of the constitution, point number two states that: and whereas those principles can only be realised in a democratic society in which the executive is accountable to the legislature and judiciary:
(For the executive to be accountable to the judiciary, everyone in the executive i.e. the president, vice president and prime minister should be held accountable in court in the event where they are responsible for any wrongdoings. The foundations of the constitution imply that anyone in government is not above the law, no immunity for members of the executive. For the executive to be accountable to the legislature, anyone in parliament should be able to question their ability to carry out their duties, sanction them to parliament in the event where more clarification on decisions made by the government is required) .
- The legislature should be composed of elected members and representative of the people
(For the sake of democracy, it is important for the opposition in parliament to have 33% representation or if the number can’t be accounted for by virtue of elections, they should have a certain percentage of voting rights with the ability to order re-evaluation of decisions in situations where there is a less than 5% difference in voting outcomes. This could work if every decision in parliament is decided by a vote).
- The judiciary should dispence justice without fear or favour, thereby ensuring that all human rights are preserved and protected and that the duties of every person are faithfully discharged:
(This is affected by whether or not the government has full control of the judiciary. For justice to be dispensed without fear or favour, the judiciary should be able to function autonomously. Members of the judiciary should not be swayed by political affiliations. The judiciary should be resistant to both foreign and domestic threats. If this is fixed, matters related to how efficient the judiciary is in dispensing justice will be much easier to deal with)
CHAPTER ONE: THE UNITED REPUBLIC, POLITICAL PARTIES, THE PEOPLE AND THE POLICY OF SOCIALISM AND SELF-RELIANCE
2(2) For the purpose of the efficient discharge of the functions of the government of the united republic or of the revolutionary government of Zanzibar, the president may, in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the law or provisions of such law as may be enacted by parliament, divide the united republic into regions, districts and other areas: Provided that the president shall first consult with the president of Zanzibar before dividing Tanzania and Zanzibar into regions, disctricts or other areas
3(1) The united republic is a democratic, secular and socialist state which adheres to multi-party democracy
3(2) All matters pertaining to registration and administration of political parties in the united republic shall be governed by the provisions of this constitution and of a law enacted by parliament for that purpose
4(1) All state authority in the united republic shall be exercised and controlled by two organs vested with executive powers, two organs vested with judicial powers and two organs vested with legislative and supervisory powers over the conduct of public affairs:
4(2): Review analysis on point 4(1)
4(3): Review analysis on point 4(1)
5(2): Parliament may enact a law imposing conditions restricting a citizen from exercising the right to vote by reason of any of the following grounds
2(b)- being mentally fit: This section does not specify how to determine whether or not a citizen is mentally ill. Some forms of mental illness can’t affect the ability of a voter to arrive at a reasonable decision
5(2)(d): Omission or failure to prove or to produce evidence as to age, citizenship or registration as a voter.
For the purposes of ensuring that voting is a right for everyone, registration could be done online with the aim of ensuring that any registered voter is allowed to vote at any centre
5(3) Parliament shall enact electoral law to provide for the following
(5) (3) (a) The establishment of a permanent voter’s register and prescribing the procedure for it’s ammendment or updating information contained in the register
(5) (3) (b) Specification of places and times for registration of voters and for voting
(5) (3) c - Accounted for by having an online registration system. See section (2) (d)
(5) (3) d - Specifications of the duties and functions of the electoral commission and the procedure for every election which shall be conducted under the direction and supervision of the electoral commission
(For the executive to be accountable to the judiciary, everyone in the executive i.e. the president, vice president and prime minister should be held accountable in court in the event where they are responsible for any wrongdoings. The foundations of the constitution imply that anyone in government is not above the law, no immunity for members of the executive. For the executive to be accountable to the legislature, anyone in parliament should be able to question their ability to carry out their duties, sanction them to parliament in the event where more clarification on decisions made by the government is required) .
- The legislature should be composed of elected members and representative of the people
(For the sake of democracy, it is important for the opposition in parliament to have 33% representation or if the number can’t be accounted for by virtue of elections, they should have a certain percentage of voting rights with the ability to order re-evaluation of decisions in situations where there is a less than 5% difference in voting outcomes. This could work if every decision in parliament is decided by a vote).
- The judiciary should dispence justice without fear or favour, thereby ensuring that all human rights are preserved and protected and that the duties of every person are faithfully discharged:
(This is affected by whether or not the government has full control of the judiciary. For justice to be dispensed without fear or favour, the judiciary should be able to function autonomously. Members of the judiciary should not be swayed by political affiliations. The judiciary should be resistant to both foreign and domestic threats. If this is fixed, matters related to how efficient the judiciary is in dispensing justice will be much easier to deal with)
CHAPTER ONE: THE UNITED REPUBLIC, POLITICAL PARTIES, THE PEOPLE AND THE POLICY OF SOCIALISM AND SELF-RELIANCE
- Tanzania is one state and is a sovereign united republic: This may be up for debate due to deliberations from the previous constitution review process where we couldn’t come to a consensus on whether a two tier or three tier government would suit us. There needs to be a detailed real life evaluation to determine whether or not running the country as a three tier government is beneficial. It is important to make inferences on the pros and cons of having such a set up. Once this is complete, a careful camparison should be made to determine whether we need a three tier government or a modified two tier government
2(2) For the purpose of the efficient discharge of the functions of the government of the united republic or of the revolutionary government of Zanzibar, the president may, in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the law or provisions of such law as may be enacted by parliament, divide the united republic into regions, districts and other areas: Provided that the president shall first consult with the president of Zanzibar before dividing Tanzania and Zanzibar into regions, disctricts or other areas
- Division of the country into regions and districts may not necessarily have anything to do with efficiency. Since the constitution specifically mentions the people with the mandate to draw boarders between different districts and regions, it should be done once to prevent cases where the country is divided especially with the loophole that says “Other areas”
- The institution that is dealt with the responsibility of protecting our boarders and integrity of our territory has always been the JWTZ. Consultations should be made only with the millitary and they should have the final say on how our land is structured
3(1) The united republic is a democratic, secular and socialist state which adheres to multi-party democracy
- Socialism is a thing of the past
3(2) All matters pertaining to registration and administration of political parties in the united republic shall be governed by the provisions of this constitution and of a law enacted by parliament for that purpose
- Registration of political parties should follow strict guidelines that should be clear within the constitution but should not be solely a duty that is conducted in parliament. This should be done by a panel of high court judges before a thorough analysis in parliament. The legislature should recommend changes to the panel of judges in case they have pressing issues. The panel of judges alone should be responsible for making further changes that would still require evaluation in parliament. This regulation should be reviewed two or three years prior to a general election
4(1) All state authority in the united republic shall be exercised and controlled by two organs vested with executive powers, two organs vested with judicial powers and two organs vested with legislative and supervisory powers over the conduct of public affairs:
- State authority may vary and because of that, not everyone can be trusted to make all decisions. As matter of fact, most decisions that require state authority have always been made by the shadow government and by CCM
- The Tanzanian government has to consider having powerful politicians in what will be a huge risk
4(2): Review analysis on point 4(1)
4(3): Review analysis on point 4(1)
5(2): Parliament may enact a law imposing conditions restricting a citizen from exercising the right to vote by reason of any of the following grounds
2(b)- being mentally fit: This section does not specify how to determine whether or not a citizen is mentally ill. Some forms of mental illness can’t affect the ability of a voter to arrive at a reasonable decision
5(2)(d): Omission or failure to prove or to produce evidence as to age, citizenship or registration as a voter.
- Voters cards are always issued to voters prior to an election
For the purposes of ensuring that voting is a right for everyone, registration could be done online with the aim of ensuring that any registered voter is allowed to vote at any centre
5(3) Parliament shall enact electoral law to provide for the following
(5) (3) (a) The establishment of a permanent voter’s register and prescribing the procedure for it’s ammendment or updating information contained in the register
- There appears to be a conflict of interest in establishment of the voter’s register
- The voter’s register cannot be permanent due to new entries and deletions in the build up to any election.
- Establishment of the voter’s register should be done by a neutral electoral commission in the build up to an election
- Laws governing the electoral process should be prescribed by a panel of high court judges before delibaration in parliament
(5) (3) (b) Specification of places and times for registration of voters and for voting
- Conflict of interest with members of parliament
- This should be set by the panel of high court judges in conjunction with an independent electoral commision
(5) (3) c - Accounted for by having an online registration system. See section (2) (d)
(5) (3) d - Specifications of the duties and functions of the electoral commission and the procedure for every election which shall be conducted under the direction and supervision of the electoral commission
- There would be a conflict of interest if the parliament were to be entrusted with the responsibility of coming up with legislation for the electoral commission and for electoral proceedings.
- This could be taken care of by enabling a panel of high court judges to make the legislation with parliament to deliberate on findings in the build up to every election
