By Correspondent
9th March 2012
Sengerema residents in Mwanza region have proposed the Constitutional Review Act, 2011 to include the independent candidacy’s position to broaden democracy in the country.
Tanzania Evangelical Fellowship Network district chairman Lusesa Charles said it was the right time for a country with over 40 million people to have an independent candidate.
Contributing to a constitutional debate, Charles said: “We have been going through a lot of turmoil before and after the election because our constitution does not allow a private candidate to run for any position.”
He said it was possible to have clean and patriotic candidates outside political parties, who could stand for the post.
“We have been missing this chance because our current constitution is silent on the matter,” he said.
A Serengeti resident, Kasusu Wayela proposed the new constitution to put in place the formation of three governments.
“We have seen our colleagues in Zanzibar having their own government, why not we mainlanders and union government. We want the new constitution to state clearly the formation of three governments of Tanganyika, the union and that of Zanzibar. This will help mainlanders to have an equal share for the country’s resources with islanders,” he said.
He was asking what was behind the government’s reluctance to introduce three governments.
Another Sengerema resident Adam Salum was in the opinion that there was no need for the president to appoint deputy ministers suggesting that it was possible their duties be done by permanent secretaries to reduce the government’s running costs.
ASDA pastor in Sengerema Jackson Mazamile proposed powers to revoke licences of investors in the mining sector to enable others to come in if they had violated applicable laws.
“Our resources have been depleted much. We have been observing the government awarding some investors a 99-year contract. This will only create more poverty,” he said.
Mwanza Policy Initiatives (MPI) facilitate Milton Rutabana said the current constitution needed some amendments to meet people’s expectations, rights and give enough room for people to express their views on what they wanted to be in the constitution.
The MPI official stressed the importance of civic education among members of the public to make them well informed of constitutional matters.
“We want people in the country to be empowered in different categories from national to grassroots level,” he said.
MPI finance and administration officer Kizito Kondamali said there was a need for Tanzanians to know various policies so that they could have time to evaluate how policies were implemented by the government for the betterment of all Tanzanians.
“We in MPI are trying to show members of the public how those policies are implemented, where the government has failed and why but also we are cooperating with people to find the way forward,” he said.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
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