by Erick Kabendera | African Arguments | 23rd November, 2010
The outgoing prime minister struggled to persuade voters to support a parliamentary candidate on the ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) ticket in Sumbawanga constituency in southwestern Tanzania hardly a day before the polling last week.
Over 99 percent of the voters in the constituency are Christians who had accused the candidate Aeishi Halfan Hilal of offending Christianity when he used the doctrine of the Trinity to liken CCM presidential candidate Jakaya Kikwete with Father and himself a Holy Spirit at a previous campaign rally.
Despite premier Pinda assuring voters the party had met Roman Catholic clergymen and apologized for the candidate’s “misuse of words” the gathering seemed unconvinced as they quietly infuriated, in anger.
After the elections were held and final results announced, CCM lost the seat to the main opposition party Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema).
Religious biases in Tanzania’s elections started with the church’s reaction to a budget proposal to re-examine tax exemptions enjoyed by churches as there were reports of widespread abuse, like importing luxury vehicles by private individuals, probably friends of senior clergymen, and denying revenue to the government early this year.
Despite the government finally removing the proposal, the bitterness endured as in the final analysis it sounded as if the church believed that President Jakaya Kikwete and immediate former finance minister Mustafa Mkulo were taking one step back because it was election time.
The issue of not choosing candidates basing on their religious affiliations in the country needs to be stretched wider than what President Kikwete said — that voters should not choose candidates basing on their religion affiliations, which he said, would endanger peace and unity the country has enjoyed since independence — in his final address a few hours before the elections. Despite the feeling but the election principal in relation to religion over the years has been that the candidate should meet standards and criteria for being supported or elected as President.
However, there was a mixture of ideas on the issue by religious leaders during the campaigns with Sheikh Mohammed Iddi Mohammed and Bishop Sylvester Gamanywa who issued a declaration against canvassing for Chadema’s presidential candidate Dr Wilibrod Slaa on religious grounds, much as they did not cite him by name.
On the other side, bishop David Mwasota of Pentecostal Churches of Tanzania (PCT) was apparently credited with a circulating e-mail of bringing all votes to ‘a Christian,’ while a radio program over a Muslim station (Radio Heri 104 FM), with Sheikh Mohammed Idd present, raised critical issues on the Christian clerics. He pointed out that their manifesto had singled out the need for an honest and God-fearing individual as leader or one that could be voted for, and no such evidence was available in relation to Dr Slaa, but clearly the churches were canvassing for him.
That was before unconfirmed reports started travelling across the country that the President, who is a Muslim, was quietly awarding key positions to his fellow Muslims. The claims led to the publishing of an article in a newspaper owned by businessman-politician Rostam Aziz — a close associate of the President — showing the number of non-Muslim senior civil servants in the government and parastatals. But as it was on the final day of campaigns, it is hard to say how much this swung voters on the side of the president.
When it comes to the final tally, from 10 million voters in 2005 to 8 million voters this time — it is evident thatPresident Kikwete was the big loser. It was his votes which came down, that is 6 million and 80 percent of the vote to 4 million and 61 percent of the vote. Dr Slaa (standing in for Freeman Mbowe who contested for Chadema in 2005) changed places with Prof. Lipumba, who now took Mbowe’s 0.6 million votes and Dr Slaa took the professor’s 2.8 million votes of 2005. That seemed to be a clear structural repetition of 2005 voting!
But the general mood — clearly visible during this time — is a big contradiction, with the widely touted belief that Tanzania is a country of unity where people’s religious beliefs and tribe have never been a dividing factor like in its neighboring countries such as Kenya.
Religion has always been a silent factor on the Mainland, but was diminished by first President Julius Nyerere’s ties with clerics of the Muslim side, and natural support from his own Catholic and Christian quarters. As Nyerere was in office for a long time, and his repressive manner of rule removed critics like Sheikh Suleiman Takadir, this homogenous affinity with Nyerere across the religious divide became something of a national culture.
But the issues had not been resolved underneath, partially owing to the lingering effects of the Zanzibar Revolution, and the latter being a hotbed of anti-Nyerere sentiments (which even the late Prof. Abdulrahman Mohamed Babu (an Afro-Shiraz Party brain) entertained. Despite that, Nyerere probably saved him from certain execution by Isles authorities had he been returned there instead of being detained.
The issue about church influence is less religion than policy but that was actually exasperated by Dr Slaa in the presidential race that seemed tough for the ruling party. It was evident that the ruling party felt that his candidature would swing Christian voters to his advantage, as most religious leaders from key denominations/churches came out to show their support for the Dr. The general presidential campaigns also put the ruling party and its presidential candidate on the defensive especially on issues related to graft, free education and free health care.
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At the root of all this lies poverty, lack of resources and the inevitable ignorance that goes with it. Once one improves a country’s economic prospect in a tactful manner, the general level of political discourse will naturally rise with the general level of education. We have too many illiterates and the fewer semi-literate “misleaders” are using that as a weapon.
The really learned scholars on matters of divinity and the philosophy of religion see much in common between these two Abrahamic religions, particularly when compared with some cultures of the Far East and the Indian subcontinent. The worst thing is seeing Africans being divided by religious affiliations that are hardly African. And this is not unique to Tanzania, one Nigerian Bishop had the frank courage to go on air, after a Muslim-Christian clash, wondering if these foreign religions are any better at all than the traditional African religions, he lamented that at least in the olden days people had civility, respect for fellow man and nature, and would not dare kill each other by a religious passion. We are not there yet (Nigeria’s level) but these things could escalate if left unchecked.
My fear is the forces of illiteracy are having a home field advantage over the uphill task of a vigilant and sober commitment to the culture of meritocracy. Anytime the populace is frustrated, it is very easy to peddle all kinds of negatively divisive talk (we should remember that not all division is negative). Hitler did it, Mtikila did it.
This is a cancer we need to nip very early, lest it metastasize.
Fast forward five years down the line; do you think we will be discussing the very same issues? Is the number of illiterates going to decrease? Or, whatever we saw five weeks ago would be magnified?
Siku zote chumba kisichofagiliwa hupata vumbi, na hata buibui hutanda. Sioni ufagizi hususan kuondoa vumbi hili la udini, juhudi za kupandisha elimu hata hazizidi ongezeko la watu kwa kuzaliana, sasa hivi tuna literacy rate 69%, miaka mitano ijayo tutakuwa tunaongea haya haya kama si mabaya zaidi.
Naona kama viongozi washajiamulia kwamba matatizo yetu ni makubwa sana, na kujifanya wanaweza kuyatatua ni kujitakia ugonjwa wa moyo tu, na hivyo kwa sababu hatuna ufuatiliaji wa maana wala uwajibishaji unaoeleweka, wameamua kugida madaraka huku wakiimba wimbo mmoja na kucheza mwingine. Wanaimba usawa wakati maisha yao si sawa na ya wananchi wa vijijini, maisha bora kwa wote yatakuja vipi wakati wengine wanaishi maisha ya angalau dola za kimarekani mia moja kwa siku, huku wengine hata dola moja kasheshe? Tofauti ya mara 100 hiyo, nchi moja !
Sasa ukimkuta huyu mtu wa dola moja kwa siku na kuamua kumjaza ujinga wa udini na vitu vingine, hata kama haamini anaweza kukubali apate platform ya kuonyesha hasira zake tu kwa kuachwa solemba hivyo.
Ndiyo maana nasema bila suluhisho la kiuchumi tutakuwa tunacheza tu, walisema a hungry man is an angry man. And an angry man cannot reason properly.
Nimekuwa nikiamini kwamba elimu ndio inaweza kuikomboa Tanzania na watu wake. Yaani, heri kuwa maskini lakini wananchi wawe wameelimika, wanajua kufikiria wenyewe na kujenga hoja; labda wanaweza wakagundua kitu huko mbeleni kitachosaidia kufanya maisha kwa ujumla kuwa ahueni.
Lakini, nilipoenda kwenye ofisi za Twaweza/Uwezo nikakumbushwa kitu kingine. Umaskini umekithiri kwenye sehemu nyingi sana — kuna kijizuu (pamphlet) kilichokuwa na takwimu za idadi za watoto wenye utapia mlo Tanzania. Ingawa nimezunguka sehemu nyingi tu, na kuona watoto wenye utapia mlo, ila tarakimu nilizoziona zinasikitisha. (Nitazileta hizo takwimu hapa.)
Bahati mbaya, huwezi kumfundisha mtu ambaye hana kitu tumboni!
Sasa, tutaanzia wapi? Maana’ke kila unapoangalia ndio hivyo. Bihemo alikuja na bottom-up approach, hii inawezekana? Au tuelekeze nguvu kwenye kuwawajibisha viongozi wetu au kujaribu kuchagua viongozi bora?
@SN
Ishu kama hiyo ndio niliyokuwa nakuambia kwenye comment yangu. Yaani kuna matatizo mengi kiasi kwamba mtu hujui uanze wapi. Matatizo kama hayo yanahitaji immediate attention…njaa, ukame,…etc hata kabla ya kuanza kufikiria mambo mengine.
Manake unaweza kusema uweke nguvu zote kwenye kutatua njaa na kilimo. Ila utakuwa umesahau bara bara and elimu labda. Kutatua yote kwa wakati mmoja ni vigumu kutokana na sababu ya kiuchumi. Yaani ndio hivyo. Sometimes I think we need divine intervention.