| Debate on independent candidates gathers pace | Send to a friend |
| Wednesday, 10 March 2010 12:36 |
 By Ray NaluyagaThe government’s unending excuses in the implementation of the High Court decision of 2005 that it was unconstitutional to bar private candidates from participating in the country’s elective posts have continued to raise questions. The questions came following comments by the Minister of State, Office of the prime Minister, (Policy, Co-ordination and Parliamentary Affairs) Mr Philip Marmo that if the Court of Appeal insists on having private candidates for this year’s general election then the government will be forced to postpone it so as to allow the process to change the constitution to take place. Mr Marmo was also of the view that the changing of the constitution will not automatically effect the participation of private candidates for the posts of the president and MPs unless a referendum is conducted. Speaking to the Political Platform about the time needed to change the constitution, former university of Dar Es Salaam Law lecturer, Prof Issa Shivji said he does not see the reason why the government should seek to postpone the elections for want of time to change the constitution. He said if the government was serious and had the political will to allow private candidates to participate in the 2010 general election it can happen. “The government can easily adopt the process to change the constitution, followed by amending electoral laws and regulations a matter of priority for the state machinery,” he said. He said he does not understand what Mr Marmo wants to be changed in the constitution which cannot be done without postponing the 2010 general election. He said once the High Court has passed the judgement everything else has to follow. On this, Mr Marmo said the failure to implement the High Court decision was due to the government’s appeal. “There is no conflict between the government and the judiciary over the implementation of the High Court decision on private candidates but the appeal by the government caused the earlier decision not to be implemented,” he said. Mr Marmo used the analogy of a death penalty on how the judgement to hang is normally withheld when the convict appeals but when asked on other cases such as that of the popular musician Nguza Viking who continued to serve his sentence despite appeal, Mr Marmo said the two cases are of different circumstances. Speaking to the Political Platform, University of Dar Es Salaam Senior lecturer Dr Azaveli Lwaitama said the government’s fear on presidential and parliamentary private candidates is unfounded and useless. “The government’s reluctance is about controlling people, through the ruling party’s machinery,” he said. Elaborating, Dr Azaveli told this magazine that the candidates that are sought to be private are normally vetted and approved by CCM’s NEC hence retaining a grip on them once they are elected into parliament or presidency. He said though he is not a lawyer, he fails to see why the government through Mr Marmo should seek to postpone elections because of time constraint in changing the constitution. “During the single party rule in the sixties, private candidates were allowed, what the government needs to do is to go back to its archives, retrieve that law, copy and paste it, there is nothing new in this,” said Dr Azaveli. The Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) has vowed to seek court injunction to stop the general election should the Government refuse to allow private candidates. The Executive Director of the LHRC, Mr Francis Kiwanga, says the Centre was concerned about the matter, and that they were ready to seek court's intervention. He told the Political Platform that about eight months remaining is enough for government to work on a legal framework for private candidates to stand in the next general election. "We want the government to comply by allowing private candidates as decided by the High Court in 2006, or else we will go to court to stop the election," says Mr Kiwanga. He says the Centre would join other Tanzanians who would like to see private candidates being allowed. Mr Kiwanga criticized Deputy Attorney General George Masaju and Minister for state, Policy and Parliamentary Coordination Philip Marmo who recently gave statements contradicting the court's decision on the matter. The activist said for the Government to continue disobeying the court order was interfering in the rule of law in the country. Likewise, he added, the statement by Mr Marmo openly showed that the government was deliberately refusing to comply with the court order. The campaign to have private candidates dates back some 16 years ago, when Rev Mtikila instituted a constitutional petition to enforce some of his basic rights including the right to participate in public affairs without being forced to join a political party. In October 1994, the late Mr Justice Kahwa Rugakingira ruled that the amendments made to articles 39, 67 and 77 of the Constitution restricting the right to contest in elections to political parties candidates only were capable of being abused to confine the right of governing to a few and to render illusory the emergence of a truly democratic society. The government appealed but later withdrew the case and rushed a Bill to parliament to amend article 39, 67 of the constitution which restricted private candidates, making it mandatory that any Tanzanian wishing to contest for presidency or MP must first join a political party. Following the amendments, Rev Mtikila filed another constitutional petition to challenge the amendments, and again won but the government challenged the High Court's verdict on the grounds that the making of laws was the preserve of Parliament and whether the High Court which is the creature of the Constitution has powers to rule over the same constitution. The NCCR Mageuzi party chairman, Mr James Mbatia, says even if the government allows private candidates, only the rich will afford to stand because elections are very expensive. "Only rich businessmen/women and corrupt public officials will be ready to risk their positions and get into politics to stand as private candidates, if they are not given a chance through party nominations, but the poor majority will not afford," said Mr Mbatia. On his part, former Attorney General Mr Mark Bomani notes that some fears expressed by the opponents of private candidates are without foundation. He says there is no overwhelming evidence to show that by allowing private candidates to contest elections the results would be chaos as claimed by opponents of it. "Indeed in many countries where private candidates are allowed such as in United States and UK very few private candidates actually make it," he says. He adds that in the 1992 USA presidential election, one of the private candidate billionaire Ross Perrot secured 19 percent only of the votes, suggesting that a private candidate will always have a tough hill to climb. Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites           |
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