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What next after CCM changes? Sunday, 17 April 2011 09:35
By The Citizen Reporters
Dar es Salaam. Despite making changes to its secretariat and central committee, CCM faces difficult times ahead as competing forces within the party marshal for support in what could become a major showdown whose outcome, analysts say, may redefine the countrys political landscape ahead of President Jakaya Kikwetes succession in 2015. CCM national chairman Kikwete and the partys new leadership could be in for some trying moments as the party prepares to implement some tough decisions arrived at last weeks National Executive Committee and Central Committee meetings in Dodoma.
One of the resolutions is an apparent agreement to offload some party heavyweights, whose alleged link to corruption has been cited as a constant drawback in efforts to clean the partys tainted image to win approval, mainly among the youth and well schooled segment of the population.
Some CCM insiders and independent political commentator say the planned expulsion of scores of members, even if well intentioned, could backfire and deepen existing divisions and cause irreparable damage to the partys endeavour to continue holding power beyond 2015.
The Dodoma meeting gave a three-month ultimatum to unnamed leaders holding various positions in the party hierarchy to voluntarily step down or face expulsion. No particular names or positions were given and it was not made very clear if those targeted will leave the party altogether. However, the new deputy secretary-general (Mainland), Captain (rtd) John Chiligati, gave a hint in Dodoma, suggesting that those on notice were the ones whose names have frequently been linked with various major corruption scandals in the country.
Capt Chiligati mentioned some of the scandals as the External Payment Arrears (EPA) account in which about Sh133 billion ($116 million) was lost by the Bank of Tanzania to 22 companies in 2005 through repayment of the countrys external debt and the Richmond saga, where a $172 million emergency power generation contract was awarded to a company which a parliamentary probe committee dismissed as a briefcase outfit.
Former Prime Minister Mr Edward Lowassa and former Cabinet ministers Nazir Karamagi and Ibrahim Msabaha resigned after they were adversely mentioned in the committees report.
But as CCM members and an anxious public await the outcome, warnings have begun to emerge over the intended purge. A NEC member who attended the Dodoma meetings told The Citizen on Sunday that the plan to expel those perceived as corrupt had put the party on a knife edge.The official, who did not want to be named due to the sensitivity of the discussions, said the names of some very powerful people in CCM were being mentioned as among those the party wanted to get rid of.
He added that it was safe to conclude that CCM was headed for an irreparable split. (IMO...In the long run this is good for our country)
Some of us are concerned about how this unprecedented exercise will be carried out. Who doesnt know the influence of these people? Their tentacles run very deep, and their expulsion could see half of the members leaving the party, said the source, who heads one of CCMs regional secretariats.
The head of the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM), Dr Benson Bana, also cautioned the party against making assumptions as far as corruption was concerned.
We all know that this country is governed by the rule of law its true that Nyerere insisted on one taking responsibility even when he or she is just a suspect, but we should keep in mind that its only a court of law that can prove ones innocence or otherwise. There are a lot of rich people in CCM, so where do you draw the line? he queried.
He added: I have said before that this party needs to go back to basics, and that is the Arusha Declaration, where the corrupt should never join the party in the first place.Reached for comment yesterday, Capt Chiligati, who was elevated in Dodoma from the post of publicity and ideology secretary, was adamant, saying the party would implement all resolutions arrived at in Dodoma.
There is no one who is more powerful than the party itself. The CC (Central Committee) has decided and the National Executive Committee unanimously agreed that they should go, they should do that, he said, adding that fears of a damaging fallout were unfounded. During the Dodoma meeting, Mr Kikwete was quoted saying: We will ask them to take responsibility, and if that doesnt happen then we will ask the delegates to deal with them.
Pundits, however, said as things stood now, the planned countrywide weeding of undesirable elements would not be easy since the targeted group includes officials running party affairs across the country.
A lot needs to be done since those being targeted are so powerful, and must be strategising already, Mr Joseph Butiku, executive director and trustee of the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation, told The Citizen on Sunday on the sidelines of the third Julius Nyerere Intellectual Festival Week at the UDSM.
Two top UVCCM officials, Mr Paul Makonda (Kilimanjaro), and Mr Hussein Bashe, who are both members of the wings executive council, have expressed contrasting views on how the intended purge should be carried out.
Mr Makonda told a press conference in Dar es Salaam that there were hundreds of corrupt people in CCMs top echelons, adding that none should be spared if the party was really intent on being viewed as serious in its endeavour to cleanse itself.
For his part, Mr Bashe said he had written to the new secretariat, warning against smear campaigns and what he described as personality politics. Character assassination wont take us anywhere if we want to get out of the shell and remain united, he said.
Writing about the CCM challenges, UDSM lecturer Azaveli Lwaitama said CCM should revisit the Arusha Declaration to see where it went astray. He said, however, that the problems the country was facing required much more than just leadership changes in CCM or other political parties. He said leaders should focus on issues of leadership and policy reforms rather than engaging in a witch-hunt of a few rotten apples.
Reported by Tom Mosoba and Sylivester Ernest
By The Citizen Reporters
Dar es Salaam. Despite making changes to its secretariat and central committee, CCM faces difficult times ahead as competing forces within the party marshal for support in what could become a major showdown whose outcome, analysts say, may redefine the countrys political landscape ahead of President Jakaya Kikwetes succession in 2015. CCM national chairman Kikwete and the partys new leadership could be in for some trying moments as the party prepares to implement some tough decisions arrived at last weeks National Executive Committee and Central Committee meetings in Dodoma.
One of the resolutions is an apparent agreement to offload some party heavyweights, whose alleged link to corruption has been cited as a constant drawback in efforts to clean the partys tainted image to win approval, mainly among the youth and well schooled segment of the population.
Some CCM insiders and independent political commentator say the planned expulsion of scores of members, even if well intentioned, could backfire and deepen existing divisions and cause irreparable damage to the partys endeavour to continue holding power beyond 2015.
The Dodoma meeting gave a three-month ultimatum to unnamed leaders holding various positions in the party hierarchy to voluntarily step down or face expulsion. No particular names or positions were given and it was not made very clear if those targeted will leave the party altogether. However, the new deputy secretary-general (Mainland), Captain (rtd) John Chiligati, gave a hint in Dodoma, suggesting that those on notice were the ones whose names have frequently been linked with various major corruption scandals in the country.
Capt Chiligati mentioned some of the scandals as the External Payment Arrears (EPA) account in which about Sh133 billion ($116 million) was lost by the Bank of Tanzania to 22 companies in 2005 through repayment of the countrys external debt and the Richmond saga, where a $172 million emergency power generation contract was awarded to a company which a parliamentary probe committee dismissed as a briefcase outfit.
Former Prime Minister Mr Edward Lowassa and former Cabinet ministers Nazir Karamagi and Ibrahim Msabaha resigned after they were adversely mentioned in the committees report.
But as CCM members and an anxious public await the outcome, warnings have begun to emerge over the intended purge. A NEC member who attended the Dodoma meetings told The Citizen on Sunday that the plan to expel those perceived as corrupt had put the party on a knife edge.The official, who did not want to be named due to the sensitivity of the discussions, said the names of some very powerful people in CCM were being mentioned as among those the party wanted to get rid of.
He added that it was safe to conclude that CCM was headed for an irreparable split. (IMO...In the long run this is good for our country)
Some of us are concerned about how this unprecedented exercise will be carried out. Who doesnt know the influence of these people? Their tentacles run very deep, and their expulsion could see half of the members leaving the party, said the source, who heads one of CCMs regional secretariats.
The head of the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM), Dr Benson Bana, also cautioned the party against making assumptions as far as corruption was concerned.
We all know that this country is governed by the rule of law its true that Nyerere insisted on one taking responsibility even when he or she is just a suspect, but we should keep in mind that its only a court of law that can prove ones innocence or otherwise. There are a lot of rich people in CCM, so where do you draw the line? he queried.
He added: I have said before that this party needs to go back to basics, and that is the Arusha Declaration, where the corrupt should never join the party in the first place.Reached for comment yesterday, Capt Chiligati, who was elevated in Dodoma from the post of publicity and ideology secretary, was adamant, saying the party would implement all resolutions arrived at in Dodoma.
There is no one who is more powerful than the party itself. The CC (Central Committee) has decided and the National Executive Committee unanimously agreed that they should go, they should do that, he said, adding that fears of a damaging fallout were unfounded. During the Dodoma meeting, Mr Kikwete was quoted saying: We will ask them to take responsibility, and if that doesnt happen then we will ask the delegates to deal with them.
Pundits, however, said as things stood now, the planned countrywide weeding of undesirable elements would not be easy since the targeted group includes officials running party affairs across the country.
A lot needs to be done since those being targeted are so powerful, and must be strategising already, Mr Joseph Butiku, executive director and trustee of the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation, told The Citizen on Sunday on the sidelines of the third Julius Nyerere Intellectual Festival Week at the UDSM.
Two top UVCCM officials, Mr Paul Makonda (Kilimanjaro), and Mr Hussein Bashe, who are both members of the wings executive council, have expressed contrasting views on how the intended purge should be carried out.
Mr Makonda told a press conference in Dar es Salaam that there were hundreds of corrupt people in CCMs top echelons, adding that none should be spared if the party was really intent on being viewed as serious in its endeavour to cleanse itself.
For his part, Mr Bashe said he had written to the new secretariat, warning against smear campaigns and what he described as personality politics. Character assassination wont take us anywhere if we want to get out of the shell and remain united, he said.
Writing about the CCM challenges, UDSM lecturer Azaveli Lwaitama said CCM should revisit the Arusha Declaration to see where it went astray. He said, however, that the problems the country was facing required much more than just leadership changes in CCM or other political parties. He said leaders should focus on issues of leadership and policy reforms rather than engaging in a witch-hunt of a few rotten apples.
Reported by Tom Mosoba and Sylivester Ernest
