After exploring the genesis and the results of the just-ended elections that left Tanzania with egg on its face, this last instalment proposes what should be done. The Tanzania we used to know is long gone. Its hyped-up cohesion, peace, and unity are also long gone. Therefore, it needs practical and true reconciliation. Will Tanzania save itself from itself? It’s hard to tell without the likes of African icons Nelson Mandela and Julius Nyerere.
Where to start
I) Tanzania must locate, isolate, and admit all flaws which triggered the violence.
II) It must admit its root causes.
III) Tanzania should avoid looking for somebody else to blame. Some leaders have claimed that demonstrators were foreigners!
IV) Authorities need to be true to themselves and all Tanzanians. The ‘island of peace’ will be revived if rulers do and preach justice for everybody and stop calling for peace without justice.
The authorities must reach out to all parties in the conflict, release all detained opposition leaders and demonstrators, and then pardon each other to build trust for reconciliation to start.
The root causes
The demonstrators clearly said they opposed (and still do) chronic abductions, corruption, despotism, forced disappearances, injustices, joblessness, murders, nepotism, the absence of a new constitution, and a truly independent electoral commission, which all stakeholders should equally and fully participate in making. Such bottlenecks must be genuinely and practically addressed, and justice should be done and seen to be done.
Symptomatically, another problem revolves around the abuse of police power and gross human rights violations, as recently evidenced in the post-election bloodbaths. Thus, Tanzania must prosecute all the culprits regardless of their affiliations or positions. Then, parties must be ready for a give-and-take agreement (if the victims agree to it) wherein mutual understanding must lead the process.
Further, dented rulers must agree to relinquish their positions to allow the creation of a transitional government that’ll conduct new credible, fair, and transparent elections wherein all stakeholders must equally and fairly participate, agree, and decide on their informed modality.
Why fresh elections?
As per regional and international observers, who form the backbone of credible, fair, and transparent elections, there were no elections. Thus, president Samia Suluhu is illegitimate as per former Botswana president Ian Khama (Daily Nation, November 9). The Southern African Development Community (SADC) observers concluded that the Tanzanian elections didn’t meet standards. For example, there are reports that there were many more police officers at certain voting stations than voters.
The African Union Election Observation Mission report, signed by former Botswana president Mokgweetsi Masisi concluded that ‘the 2025 Tanzania general elections did not comply with AU principles, normative frameworks, and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections’. Of all observers, it was only the East African Community which ‘congratulated’ Tanzania on its elections.
Many Tanzanians wondered how a president who garnered close to 100 percent of the vote would be sworn in hurriedly without any public participation.
Tanzania is in a catch-22 situation that it must work hard to pull itself out of.