Conflict deepens as CC calls Lipumba

What you need to know:

  • Prof Lipumba was on Friday reinstated as the CUF National Chairman by the Registrar of Political Parties, Judge Francis Mutungi, but the leadership of the opposition party rejected the new directive.

Dar es Salaam. A new showdown is looming in the Civic United Front (CUF) as the party’s central committee has summoned Prof Ibrahim Lipumba to appear before the party’s supreme governing council meeting to be held tomorrow.

Prof Lipumba was on Friday reinstated as the CUF National Chairman by the Registrar of Political Parties, Judge Francis Mutungi, but the leadership of the opposition party rejected the new directive.

The embattled leader and his supporters stormed the party’s Buguruni head offices on Saturday and forcefully made their way in, beating up whoeverv dared to block them.

Following the Buguruni developments, the party’s executive committee held an emergency meeting in Zanzibar on Saturday to ponder the next move. At the end of the day, the party’s deputy secretary general, Mr Nassor Mazrui, released a statement saying the Registrar’s decision was illegal.

Yesterday, the party released yet another statement saying its supreme governing council would meet tomorrow in Zanzibar with only one agenda, to hear the professor’s defensc on why he shouldn’t be penalized.

“Due to his act of storming the party’s Buguruni head offices and causing substantial damage to party’s properties, the party’s executive committee in line with Section 12 (6), (7) & (16) of the CUF constitution will present Ibrahim Lipumba to the supreme governing council to state his defence and why he should not be penalized for his actions committed yesterday (Saturday),” read part of statement signed by Mr Mazrui.

According to the statement, section 12 (6), (7) & (16) of the party’s constitution wants any member to protect the party’s integrity by showcasing good behaviour at all times, to comply with the party’s rules and constitution, to be honest with the party and defend it from enemies within and outside the party.

Reached for comment, Prof Lipumba said he is yet to receive the call from the executive committee and insisted that he will not recognize any decision by the committee.

“That committee meeting is null and void because its chair and the party’s secretary general, Seif Shariff Hamad is out of the country and even the one who was supposed to act on his behalf, deputy secretary general Magdalena Sakaya didn’t attend the meeting. On top of it, I the chairman, am not aware of the said meeting, in that context how can we say the meeting was properly convened?” asked Prof Lipumba.

Prof Lipumba is also on record for dismissing the party’s supreme governing council’s decision against him. In fact, he lodged his case at the Registrar’s office after the council decided to temporarily suspend his membership in August following a spat in the party’s national congress which was called to elect Prof Lipumba’s successor as CUF’s National Chair. Prof Lipumba resigned from the party’s chairmanship last year but later retracted his decision. The registrar’s verdict also overturned the sacking of members who include deputy secretary genera (mainland) and Kaliua legislator Magdalena Sakaya, and Mtwara Urban MP Maftaha Nachuma.