Forge a democratic Zanzibar, Moyo tells CCM

Zanzibar. Veteran politician and founding member of the Tanzania, Zanzibar Union, Hassan Nassor Moyo had said that the CCM led government was not ready to forge democracy in Zanzibar.

He said as much as the government agreed to adopt a multi-party system 23 years ago, it should also respect the democratic basics of good governance and the rule of law.

He was reacting to a decision by Zanzibar Electoral Commission (ZEC) chairman to annul the General Elections in the Isles over irregularities:

“I’m surprised that some CCM leaders are afraid to accept an opposition party’s victory. So long as we have agreed to embrace multipartism we must be ready to accept defeat. You cannot claim to embrace the system and yet want to remain in power forever."

He added: "We should not forget that we are the ones who introduced the multi-party system at a time  when only 20 per cent agreed with the system and the Parliament of Tanzania passed a bill to that effect… now I’m astonished that they cannot  hand over the Government peacefully."

Mzee Moyo  called on Zanzibaries to maintain peace and develop the spirit of reconciliation to avert violence as experience in past elections.

“The people of Zanzibar should remain calm and maintain peace if the really want realise their development goals …they need to respect and maintain agreements on reconciliation,” cautioned the politician.