What is in a 'ruling' democracy?

Salma Maoulidi looks at developments in Tanzania's ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party and assesses the state of democracy in the country

Tanzania’s ruling party Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) held its Congress in its party headquarters at Kizota in Dodoma this past weekend. The last party congress was held five years ago in 2002. The size and style of political event created a lot of media interest. High on the agenda of the Party Chair, President J. Kikwete, was restoring the party’s credibility among workers and common citizens (wananchi) following a number of graft allegations involving numerous party and government personalities. Similarly it provided an opportunity for the Chair to assert his authority and consolidate his grip on the Party after assuming its leadership following the 2005 General Election. Unexpectedly the congress also became an opportunity to conduct lessons in democracy. Amidst political recriminations by the opposition about unfair privileges the ruling party enjoys and its failure to be accountable for its unconstitutional or undemocratic practices Mr. John Tendwa, the Registrar of political parties, appears to have absolved the party when he announced in the Daily News of November 6, 2007 on the highly publicized CCM Congress, “CCM has set an example of how a democratic party must operate”.

“Gulp!” was my immediate reaction after reading the story. Not surprising the editorial reflected this line of thought having but praises for their benefactors. While most of us are not surprised by the Daily News adopting such a stance we ought to be uncomfortable, if not shocked, by Mr. Tendwa’s choice of words. One would think that there exist many models of democracy each evolving in its own context. Does ascribing a mandatory ‘must operate (in CCM fashion)’ not show some bias in where the leanings of Mr. Tendwa are in so far as political organizing and organization are concerned? ‘JK gives secretariat new face as big names fall,’ read the Citizen of November 7, 2007. It reports that Hon. Kigunge Ngombale Mwiru and former Premier Fredrick Sumaye failed to make it into the powerful National Executive Committee but were retained in the Central Committee hardly ground breaking a development. And as I went over the names, I found my self wondering what the fuss was about because I knew Hon. Msekwa, and Hon. Magret Sitta (who enjoys a place similar to his wife, Hon. A. Abdalla when he was the Speaker in the last Parliament). Nor are the names of Hon. S. Wasira, Hon. A. Kigoda or her boss Hon. D. Mwakyusa…new to most Tanzanians. Am I missing something about the ‘new and fresh’ faces? Perhaps, I was expecting to hear names like Mary Mpya, Joe Simfahamu or Salama Mpendawatu to solicit a reaction of, “who in the heck is Mpendawatu?” Alas, this was not to be. In my book I rate the election at the level of a minor reshuffle of the ranks which hardly suggests new blood. And by CCM’s own admission, as well as news stories in various newspapers, most of these individuals have been at the helm of major institutions in this country. Mr. Msekwa, the new stunned Vice Chairperson, is reported to have been Mwalimu’s right hand man since the early days of independence. Until 2005 he served as the Speaker of the National Parliament. Absent political viagra what should I and 37.99 millions Tanzanians expect from this reshuffle which is a disappointing as recent government reshuffles in terms of their commitment to bring in new and fresh personalities and ideas? In many ways the event itself held many of us captive limiting the scope of local news available. Indeed, the CCM Congress was front line news in most major papers for the whole week forcing everyone, even those of us who are increasingly indifferent to the political shenanigan that has come to define our elusive attempt at democracy in Tanzania. The Sunday Citizen of November 4, 2007 speaks volume by describing the impending elections as, “determining the fate and direction of the nation”. Such a statement equates the CCM Congress at par, if not higher than the General Elections last held in 2005 raising my eyebrows.

So what is democratic in all of this? If anything I read a lot of mixed messages in the charade that was the congress. While the Party Chair waived a wand of words condemning corruption in the Party, we saw before our eyes the different lobbying styles in operation that spelt actions closely fitting that description. Those antic we missed party members let us in on after some public exchanges of “vijembe” or “nasaha” in a supposedly democratic process. An observer writing in Raia Mwema of November 7, 2007 shared how the air in the main hall was subdued and all matters on the agenda were being endorsed without clarification or opposition Bunge style. Apparently, the CCM Chairp wants harmony in the party but does harmony equal kumezea; or sweeping issues under the carpet instead of addressing?

I must confess I was not in Dodoma and all questions I raise comes from what I heard on the radio, read in the papers and discussed with a number of wananchi. I am thus limited in that my observations are not fresh but somehow diluted as I have had to depend on other mediums to get a sense of what transpired inside Kizota Hall. This, however, does not stop me from raising key concerns which in my very humble opinion pose greater questions for an aspiring democracy.

While I respect the President’s initiative to invite representatives of friendly parties from different parts of the world to the Congress, I am keen to establish were these delegates were invited by the President of Tanzania or by the Chairperson of CCM? Moreover, given the sizeable delegation that came along I am keen to know who footed the bill for their participation. All I can hope is that tax payers’ money was utilized for maendeleo purposes while CCM dug deep into their coffers to entertain their friends. Equally, I trust government officials did not utilize public property or finances towards their participation in an undisputedly partisan event.

As a woman who comes of a country that in 1998 paved the way in the region in so far as passing a progressive legislation on sexual violence, I take strong issue with hosting Mr. Jacob Zuma at the Congress. This is a man who was trialed for sexually assaulting a woman, who was, in African terms, technically his daughter, which in itself is inappropriate let alone the circumstances in which he did it. Let us be clear irrespective of what the court in South Africa ruled, Mr. Zuma never denied what he did but affirmed his actions though his own interpretation of Zulu masculinity and its inevitable expression when confronted with a woman in kanga cloth!

Perhaps his graft accusations may not have been enough in a party whose leadership is struggling with similar accusations. Nevertheless, in view of our recent loss of Hon. Salome Mbatia, who was the deputy in the Ministry of Community Development, Gender and Children, I would have thought that female parliamentarians, and more so the women of CCM, and some of those good African men who respect their mothers and love their daughters would at least have raised objection about Mr. Zuma’s attendance. Moreover, to avoid the ethical faux pax this issue now poses, in an ideal democratic setting, CCM wakereketwa who still care what others think about the Party and its actions would have at least proposed to the ANC a less controversial name. But then again I live in a cloud of ethical standards only I and a few others have been privileged by virtue of our nonpartisanship. Such contradictions are hardly topical among those posing as flag bearers under a governance scheme that fails to meet all good governance standards. The media, I must add, faired no better choosing to focus on Mr. Zuma’s past identity as a freedom fighter while leaving out his current history as someone facing serious graft and sexual allegations. Under the new AU framework, particularly elucidated in the Peer Review Mechanism and Maputo Protocol, both are key indicators for good governance.

I cannot end this piece without going back to the subject of the elections itself, which after all was the main purpose of the Congress. In all fairness we must call a spade a spade to accurately represent what transpired. Therefore, my headline would have read “CCM vigogos reinstated in top organs” rather than elected or re-elected since such a connotation does not adequately represent what really happened or the outcome.

In electing its veterans, as well as some powerful members of the current government, CCM, in my estimation, has tried to re-assert its authority in both the executive and the legislature since most of those reshuffled hold powerful position in key governance structures. Otherwise, those not currently serving in the government or in the legislature hold considerable influence. Surprisingly, little was said about the presence of religious leaders who did more than bless the event but stayed on to receive some indoctrination.

Also visible in photographs were members of the Tanzanian People Defense Force also adorning the party colour green. Of course they may have been bodyguards to the country’s leadership but what is a country’s military which is not partisan doing in a partisan event? Does Mr. Brown or Bush go into their political party meetings with members of the army or just the secret service, or better the political party’s own intelligence and militia? Only the judiciary somehow managed to be inconspicuous at Kizota. Some of the supposed new faces like Mr. Bernard Membe formerly held positions in the civil service. Under the law civil servants are non partisan yet we have witnessed a number of civil servants venturing into politics and at times transitioning between their civil service status and their political ambitions. Absent a clear demarcation between their political appointments or elections; and their retirement from civil service does the Registrar of Political Parties not feel such issues need to be interrogated more rigorously to properly ascertain how far political parties abide to requirements set in operating laws?

I would have been more impressed if Hon. Msekwa, in view of his already distinguished career in public service (and in the party) would have declined and campaigned for a younger pick to fill the powerful position of party Vice-Chair. Undoubtedly, this would have expedited his nomination for life membership in the Central Committee. In fact all vanguards over retiring age like Kingunge and Malecela can snugly assume a new leadership role within the party (or their communities for those committed to go back to the village) reflecting a transformation in their progression in their leadership journey instead of being stuck at the helm with no where else to go.

If you ask me, democracy in Tanzania, generally, and in political parties, specifically, still has a long way to go.

* Salma Maoulidi is an Activist/Executive Director of the Sahiba Sisters Foundation in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

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