Chief Abdallah Said Fundikira

Two of Tanzania’s most distinguished chiefs in the period before independence have passed away.
The country’s first Justice Minister after independence, Chief Abdallah Said Fundikira, died of heart complications in Tabora in mid August. The late Chief joined Makerere University College in Uganda from 1940 to 1946 and obtained a qualification in Agriculture. In 1957, he was ordained as Chief of the Wanyamwezi in the Nyanyembe chiefdom. He lost his title when founding President Nyerere scrapped all chiefdoms after independence.

He continued running private business until 1990, when he spearheaded the debate on multi-partyism in Tanzania in collaboration with other politicians such as the late Kassanga Tumbo, Prince Bagenda, Mabere Marando and Ndimara Tegambwage. Fundikira played a pivotal role in organising the opposition by chairing the first interim structure of an umbrella body under the name ‘National Committee for Constitutional Reform’ which became the NCCR political party.

He later formed his own party, the Union for Multiparty Democracy (UMD) but in 1999 he shifted camp to the ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM). After the 2000 general elections, President Mkapa appointed him a nominated MP until 2005 when he was nominated as a Member of Parliament.

Chief David Kidaha Makwaia (84), who died on March 31, was a much respected and prominent tribal leader in the years before independence. He succeeded his father as Usiha Chief and later became Paramount Chief of the 50 autonomous institutions which joined together to form the Sukuma Federation in the Lake region. He cooperated with the then Governor of Tanganyika in moves being made towards independence and was the first African to be appointed to Tanganyika’s Legislative Council.

He was born into a Muslim family but later converted to Catholicism. As independence approached he facilitated the political rise of his old college friend Julius Nyerere but Mwalimu, as soon as he took over power, abolished the role of all chiefs and banished Chief Kidhaha temporarily to Tunduru district in the southern province. This experience is said to have alienated him from politics and, from then on, he concentrated on private business. He was involved in market research, was the Public Relations Officer of the East African Railways and Harbours and later operated a private insurance company. At the time of his death he had resumed the leadership of the Sukuma community and was active in preserving their traditional cultural practices. He was buried in Shinyanga at the site of the State House he occupied in the heyday of his chiefdom.

President Kikwete was quoted a few days earlier as saying that the possibility of power sharing was ‘on the table’ and CCM Secretary General Yusuf Makamba, said he was shocked by Lipumba’s statement since the talks were still going on.
Mtanzania then reported that sources within CUF had said that the party had been approaching foreign diplomatic missions in Dar es Salaam, urging them to intervene and save the tottering negotiations. Then Lipumba turned to religious leaders and even Prime Minister Edward Lowassa, pleading with them to use their good offices. He also called on the CCM Vice Chairman John Malecela, Archbishop Cardinal Polycarp Pengo, Mufti Issa bin Simba and retired Bishop Elinaza Sendoro.

Prominent lawyer, Prof Issa Shivji, said CUF should not be gunning just for coalition government in Zanzibar as the problem was much wider and needed public debate. “They should be talking of the national interest of Zanzibar and not just of CUF,” he said – Mwananchi.

President Responds.
President Kikwete then intervened on August 14 and gave some details about the talks. He said that they would come to an amicable conclusion. “The talks are still on the right track. It is true that they have stalled but I would like to assure the public that the parties concerned will resolve the impasse over the differences in a friendly manner.”
The peace talks are popularly known as Muafaka and have been characterised by heated exchanges even outside the secret venues where they have been held.

President Kikwete said the joint negotiation committee had held 12 meetings since the talks started in January this year. “There has been encouraging progress in the talks because there are a number of issues on which agreement has been reached” he said.
The President explained that agreement had been reached on three of the five items on the agenda – equity and rights in politics, issues relating to how the Zanzibar government conducted its affairs, ways to strengthen political understanding in the Isles, and the need for free and fair elections. There was partial agreement on the issue of the 2005 Zanzibar elections. One of the items on which headway was yet to be made was in connection with the modalities of creating conditions that would allow political parties in Zanzibar, specifically CUF and CCM, to work together in a peaceful and calm environment. “Negotiations on this particular item have taken long to conclude and the two parties are yet to agree. I think it is because of the sensitive nature of the issue in question” the President said. “But I think we have not reached a stage where we could justifiably say that the talks have collapsed. We definitely need to negotiate more in order to resolve the matter, with each party working hard enough on its arguments to make the other see sense in reaching an amicable conclusion.”

Then the outspoken CHADEMA MP Zitto Kabwe was suspended under House Standing Orders until January 2008 after the House voted against him, midst acclamation from ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) MP’s. He was accused of humiliating Energy and Minerals Minister Nazir Karamagi. He had claimed that the Minister had lied about a controversial gold mining contract which he had signed in London. Kabwe had tried to table a private members motion requiring the formation of a committee to investigate the contract.

During the next few days there was a huge public outcry fanned by headlines in the media. The opposition parties joined together with lawyers and other public figures to condemn the length of Kabwe’s suspension. The MP was greeted, midst heavy rain, by large crowds when he came back to Dar from the parliamentary session in Dodoma and CHADEMA announced plans for him to go on a nationwide tour by helicopter so that ‘the people could be the final judges.’ House Deputy Speaker Anne Makinda said that the suspension was not because Kabwe had presented a motion for an enquiry but for the language he had used against the Minister.

Tanzazania Daima reported on August 14 that some major changes may be made in the way Parliament works. If agreed there would be in future a Prime Minister’s question time every Thursday to answer direct questions from MP’s as is done in the House of Commons. Another possible change would be that the chairmen of Parliamentary Accounting Committees (PAC) and Local Authority Accounting Committees (LAAC) would be elected from the opposition.

One CCM MP was quoted in Tanzania Daima as complaining about restrictions on his freedom of expression by senior party members whenever MP’s became over critical of the government. He said that MP’s were becoming toothless bulldogs.
Meanwhile National Parliament Speaker, Samuel Sitta said he was concerned that CCM was being ‘hijacked by tycoons’.
In the Zanzibar House of Assembly the Speaker blocked a private member’s motion on the importation of expired rice. He said that the matter should not be debated in the House since government was already investigating and a report would be submitted to the House. He and several other MP’s were not happy with this answer.

Then there was a tightening up in the National Assembly. The Assembly’s Clerk, Damian Foka, announced that, in future, meetings of House committees would be held behind closed doors, out of reach of the media, until they had been officially tabled in parliament for discussion. He said that this was ‘in partial implementation of House Standing Orders’ that prohibit the release of information on the activities of the committees before they are tabled in the House. The media were not happy.
According to Mwananchi the CCM victory in the March 18 Tunduru by-election (see ‘CCM Still Popular’ in Tanzanian Affairs No 87) was due to its long experience, incumbency and financial clout. Even before the by-election was announced several party leaders had headed towards the constituency for what they described as official business. They were concerned that CCM might lose votes on two counts – lack of a market for cashew nuts and bad roads. First to visit the area was the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Co-operatives, Stephen Wassira. Then came party Vice Chairman John Malecela, Secretary General Yusuf Makamba and Minister Mohammed Khatib, followed by a solid campaign team of 28. They included Deputy Minister Emmanuel Nchimbi, Vita Kawawa (MP) and former opposition leaders Thomas Ngawaiya (TLP) and Richard Hiza (CUF).

CUF on the other hand thought their runner, Mazee Rajab, was popular enough to win and the Democratic party candidate was left on his own while his party chairman, Christopher Mtikila, was busy knocking at the High Court doors in Dar es Salaam.
Some people claimed that CCM poured lots of money into the campaign, especially for the buying of voting cards from opposition supporters. The heavy presence of security forces might also have played a role in intimidating voters, many of whom were said to have stayed away on polling day.

The opposition
Four of Tanzania’s innumerable opposition parties made another effort on May 10 towards establishing a united front against the virtually impregnable CCM ruling party. The Civic United Front CUF, Tanzania Labour Party (TLP), National Convention for Construction and Reform (NCCR-Mageuzi), and Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema) signed the pact. The agreement was said to be the beginning of a process that would lead to the formation of a single political party that would front a common presidential candidate in the next presidential elections in 2010 – Guardian. According to Mwananchi the Deputy Secretary General of Chadema has defected to the CCM.

A new constitution?
Former Prime Minister Joseph Warioba has joined others in asking the Government to prepare for the enactment of a new constitution – something to which it is strongly opposed. He said that what was needed was a comprehensive document without the deficiencies that have made the present one “face a barrage of scathing attacks from academics, legal experts, opposition politicians and various other Tanzanians.” “So far” he was quoted in the Guardian as saying, “fourteen amendments have been made to the Constitution, with none involving the direct participation of the people.” He proposed that the Assembly be given constitutional powers to run its affairs independently and that cabinet ministers and their deputies cease to be drawn from outside the House.

Mrs Meghji indicated that next year’s revenue should be enough to enable the government not to borrow locally as weather forecasts appeared encouraging. She will be relying on considerable support from the donor community however to do this. Some 42% of the budget would come from donors – up 3% on 2006/2007.

Many of the other measures she announced attracted strong criticism especially a proposed increase of almost 9% on diesel and petrol and also more tax on kerosene which would have seriously affected the poor. Some opposition MP’s described the budget as the worst since independence. Eventually, under heavy pressure from MP’s, she deleted the kerosene tax increase from the budget, and reduced the proposed increase in vehicle licenses for smaller vehicles and increased them for luxury cars.
Priorities for expenditure were: education (18%), roads (12.8%), health (10%) and water (5.1%). She was criticised by MP’s for allocating only 6.2% to the agricultural sector.

Funds were also provided for the identity card scheme which is aimed at facilitating tax collection, accessing bank credit and to help in the war against crime. Income tax for low income earners was reduced from 18.5% to 15%. The budget also had a ‘green’ element. Tariffs for low energy consuming bulbs and solar energy panels were zero rated.
In summary, the Government expects to spend TShs 6.06 trillion, an increase of TShs 1.20tn on the previous year.
Meghji praised the efforts being made in revenue collection and estimated that GDP would grow at 7.3% this year.

Power consultancy firm Vattenfall is to do project analysis for a power generation project on the Rufiji River in Njombe district. The $400-500 million 360 MW project is to be built by the British firm Aldwych and is to be funded by the World Bank – Habari Leo.
Zanzibar Finance Minister Mwinyihaji Mwadini reported in July that the islands could fail to achieve their millennium development goals because of high population increase. He said the Zanzibar Government was planning to step up its family planning campaign and impose stricter migration rules to regulate the flow of outsiders wishing to settle in the islands.

Opposition politicians have expressed concern over what they claimed were large numbers of people from mainland Tanzania settling in Zanzibar. The leader of the opposition in parliament, Abubakar Khamis Bakari, has advised the Zanzibar government to reintroduce entry permits for mainlanders coming to the islands. Zanzibar’s population is estimated at just over a million and is growing at an annual rate of 3.1 percent – IRIN.

DOLLARIZATION OF THE ECONOMY
In 1993 the Tanzanian shilling was trading at 479.9 to the US Dollar. Ten years later the shilling was 1194.5 to the dollar, a fall of about 150%. To-date it is trading at over 1200. Of late the shilling has been appreciating against the American dollar mainly because the US currency value has been depreciating in the world market. The shilling is also falling against Tanzania’s East African partners’ currencies. The Tanzania shilling last year dropped by almost 18 percent.

This has led some opposition politicians to call for an urgent intervention by the government to stop the growing tide towards the use of the dollar as a medium for transactions. The spokesman of the opposition alliance Mr. James Mbatia said it was a pity to see the government allowing what he described as “the on-going dollarization of the national economy” for such a long time such that the strength of the shilling had been weakened compared with the currency of neighbouring countries. He castigated the use of US dollars in payments for accommodation in tourist hotels and also claimed that some employees were also being paid in dollars albeit often in a dubious manner.

“In order to curb the effect of dollarization of the Tanzanian economy on the people, we propose that from now onwards, the government should clearly direct all economic sectors to use the Tanzanian shilling in all their transactions,” Mbatia said.
This is happening at a time when the custodian of the Shilling, Governor Daudi Balali, is alleged to be mired in scandals regarding the misuse of funds in the Central Bank which resulted in a heated debate during the budget session of Parliament. The Governor has insisted that he has done nothing wrong.

The measures being suggested by the opposition appear to be aimed at the disease rather than the cause which is the continuing low level of exports, the increasing import bill and low productivity level in the country.
Though exports have increased from US$390.43m in 1995 to US$1,723.0m in 2006, imports have increased from US$770.8m to US$3,864.1m in the same period creating a current account deficit of more than 10% of GDP. This increases pressure on the general reserves which have fallen from their peak – the equivalent of 9.2 months of imports to about 5 months this year.
While announcing her second budget this June Minister Meghji estimated that the economy will reach a growth level of 7.7% by year 2008 though she did not indicate how that is going to be achieved. She is also planning to reduce the level of dependency by increasing internal revenue collection to 18.1% of GDP. It is however difficult to see how this is going to be achieved without hurting the economy as no attempt has been made to expand the tax base. Instead, more revenue is expected from existing sources with several hikes in current tax rates. One example is the increase in excise duty on mobile phones from 5% to 7% which has netted the government an extra TShs11bn (90%) even with minimal growth in subscribers.

In her first budget Mama Meghji reduced tax on Collective Investment schemes from 30% to 10% and in this journal it was suggested that she should go further to encourage a saving culture. Employees should be allowed to invest through the PAYE system as its tax effectiveness would be an incentive. This idea has however yet to catch her eye. Perhaps she may borrow a leaf from the UK Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), Venture Capital Trust (VCT) or the idea being concocted by Mr Cameron’s Conservative Party of Lifetime Savings Accounts (LSA). The benefit of these schemes is that they reward individuals through the tax system for taking risks while encouraging savings and investments.

In an effort to seek a fast means of escaping poverty Tanzania, just like many African Countries, has been exploring for oil in and around the country. In one of its August editions the Economist described Nigeria as behaving like a suicide maniac after having earned US$223bn from oil over the last 8 years while still languishing at 159th in the UN development index (HDI). There are 177 countries in the Index. Congo-Brazaville earned over US$3bn last year alone but has only known coups and wars from it. One is bound to ask a curious but very serious question. Tanzania, with her US$10bn+ GDP is on 162 in the HDI but is peaceful and is enjoying a moderate growth with an economy proving resilient during harsh time such as the just ended drought season. However will the discovery of the much sought Black Gold in Tanzania be a blessing or a curse? As some people might sometime say, “The future is a moving target!”
Joseph Sabas

The Tabora Pound

In March 2007 a gold coin minted in German East Africa in 1916 was sold for £1,400 by the London auctioneers Dix Noonan Webb. Sometimes known as the ‘Tabora pound’, this coin has an interesting history.

At the beginning of 1916 the Governor of German East Africa, Dr Heinrich Schnee, was confident that the colony’s small army would continue to hold the Allied forces at bay. His immediate problem was the shortage of metallic currency caused by hoarding and the impossibility of getting fresh supplies of coins from Germany because of the Royal Navy’s blockade. That same blockade prevented the export of gold to Germany and the Governor decided to use Tanganyikan gold to mint coins locally.
An improvised mint was therefore established in the railway workshops at Tabora by a German mining engineer, Friedrich Schumacher. His total workforce was eleven men – two Indians, two Africans and seven Singhalese goldsmiths recruited from Dar es Salaam. A blacksmith’s forge was used to melt the gold, while a mill for rolling sheets of rubber was adapted to turn it into strips. A small hand press punched out ‘blanks’ from the metal strips and the coins were struck, one by one, by a hand-operated pipe-bending machine.

The pre-war coinage had a portrait of the German Emperor William II on the obverse (head) and the German eagle on the reverse (tail). Concerned that a locally produced version of the Imperial face might not be to the Kaiser’s liking, the Governor held a competition for an alternative. The winning design, by a German railway worker, showed a charging elephant against a mountainous background (possibly intended to represent Kilimanjaro). One of the Singhalese goldsmiths engraved the dies for both obverse and reverse. The eagle was retained for the obverse, which also had the date ‘1916’ and the mint mark T (for Tabora), while the reverse was inscribed ‘Deutsch Ost Afrika 15 Rupien’. Each coin weighed 7.168 grammes and was 75% pure gold.

The Governor’s proclamation authorising the new coinage was signed at Tabora on 15 April 1916 and production began on the same day. Using the primitive hand-operated machine, the small workforce produced 6,395 gold coins in the period to 30 June 1916. At this point the machine broke down and the task of striking the coins was transferred to Lulanguru, fifteen miles west of Tabora. A steam-driven press designed to extract oil from groundnuts was brought into use and the rate of production was almost doubled. In the nine weeks to 31 August 1916, when production ceased, 9,803 gold coins were minted.

During the four months the mint was operating, the military situation changed completely. The Allied offensive was finally launched. General Smuts captured Moshi at the beginning of April and reached Dodoma on 29 July, cutting the Tabora/Dar railway. Meanwhile the Belgian army advanced from the Congo and occupied Tabora on 19 September. As the Belgians approached, Schumacher buried the precious dies and delivered the last batch of 1,500 coins to the bank in Tabora. Schumacher was captured by the Belgians, but managed to conceal forty of the coins. He was sent to England for repatriation to Germany as a non-combatant. While in London, he was questioned by the police at New Scotland Yard, where thirty nine of the forty coins were taken from him.

The Tabora 15 rupee was only in circulation for a relatively short time. Many were hoarded or kept as souvenirs. As over sixteen thousand were produced, it is hardly a great numismatic rarity. However, it only appears rarely at auctions, hence the handsome price at the March sale. If you are lucky enough to own one, or are offered one to purchase, be warned – there are forgeries about!
The above is based on an article by D.D.Yonge which appeared in Tanganyika Notes and Records Number 62, March 1964 John Sankey

Female genital mutilation continued to be illegally practised in many rural areas on the mainland, with rates of over 80 per cent among some ethnic groups. No prosecutions were reported. The World Health Organization reported a high rate of domestic violence in Tanzania, with 30 per cent of victims suffering serious injuries due to severe beatings.
The government accepted the need to reduce severe overcrowding in prisons but little action was taken. The National Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance inspected mainland prisons and criticized harsh conditions, particularly the holding of juvenile prisoners together with adults. The Commission was still barred by the Zanzibar government from working or opening an office in Zanzibar.

The government ordered the deportation of all illegal immigrants who had failed to register or apply for citizenship. Deportations began of several thousand people originating from neighbouring countries such as Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Democratic Republic of the Congo who had lived in Tanzania for up to 15 years or longer. There were a much larger number of such people, some of whom were former refugees integrated into rural communities who had never regularized their status.
In August President Kikwete commuted all death sentences on mainland Tanzania to life imprisonment. The total number of commutations was not officially disclosed, but was estimated to be about 400. At the end of 2006, no one was under sentence of death in Tanzania.

What he didn’t know then was that his crop was the first known victim of a plague caused by a new and virulent strain of the ‘cassava brown streak virus’ that is now spreading across eastern and central Africa. Other pests and viruses that afflict cassava – notably the ‘cassava mosaic virus’, which has been advancing across East Africa since the late 1980s, leave visible marks on the foliage but always spare some of the crop.

Brown streak is a stealth virus. It has been known since 1935 when British scientists reported it in coastal Tanganyika but, until recently, it remained largely confined to Tanzania’s low-lying coastal plains. Now it has become much more virulent – apparently starting from this farm in Zanzibar. It is a threat to the whole of sub-Saharan Africa. According to the Institute for Tropical Agriculture’s branch in Dar es Salaam, cassava yield in Tanzania has fallen by between 50 and 80 per cent and during the past five years. The economic damage to farmers is conservatively estimated at more than $50 million a year.

The institute has cross-bred some of the local varieties in Zanzibar with other varieties that seem to tolerate the new virus. The first trials have been successful and some of the new varieties have now been released to farmers in Zanzibar so moving from trials to a fully operational project. Farmers in Zanzibar are clamouring for the new varieties especially a variety called Kiroba which is a favourite because of its sweet taste and smooth texture.
Thank you John Rollinson for sending this news – Editor

The fact that only a fraction of the legislators who gave their views were staunchly against the fast-tracking idea raised many questions. The dominant view among the MPs, just as is the case with the larger public, relates to fear of the possibility of Tanzania becoming a loser after the formation of the proposed federation.
Most people interviewed on the issue have said they do not see the need of having the federation at the moment because Tanzania is still lagging behind Kenya and Uganda in economic development and might end up being little more than a market for the goods they produce. Many recommended that the formation of the federation should get peoples’ consent, preferably through a referendum.

EAC Secretary General, Juma Mwapachu, was quoted as saying: “People are completely confused. What we are currently doing is not fast-tracking the East African Federation but fast-tracking the building blocs i.e. the customs union, common market, monetary union, and ultimately, the Federation itself. The time for a full-scale federation may be years ahead. It is something that cannot be decided now.”