Five issues removed from union contentious matters’ list

Dar es Salaam. Five issues have been officially removed from the list of union contentious issues in the efforts to strengthen the union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar.
The five issues were unveiled on Saturday, October 17, at a meeting held at State House Dar es Salaam during the signing of documents of agreements to remove those issues from the list.
Issues that have been removed from the list include the United Republic of Tanzania (URT) and Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar (RGZ) Joint Committee meeting procedures on union issues and agreement on oil and gas exploration and exploitation.
Others are agreements of costs to import cargo from Zanzibar at the Dar es Salaam Port; RGZ’s participation in the East African Community (EAC) and the RGZ’s involvement in international and regional issues.
Speaking during the event, Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan instructed the Joint Committee on the union issues to work hard and ensure the remaining contentious issues that are at different levels of resolution are amicably resolved.
“I also wish to instruct the ministries with unresolved issues to make efforts of find solutions on pending issues,” he said, adding.
“Likewise, I would like to instruct the offices of Attorney Generals in the URT and RGZ to speed up provision of legal assistance in resolving remaining issues whenever required.”
Speaking during the event, the Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation minister, Prof Palamagamba Kabudi said the signing of the documents justifies the true intention of the two governments to maintain and strengthen the union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar.
“This is a voluntary union; I have said on different occasions that perhaps this is the only surviving voluntary union. Most of the surviving unions are either a result of war, conquest or domination which isn’t the case for the URT,” he said.
Earlier, the minister of State in the Vice President’s Office Environment and Union Affairs Mussa Azan Zungu said remaining six issues have been resolved and that they were now waiting for approval by the Joint Committee on union issues.
He named them as challenges of milk importation from Zanzibar; appointment of the Tanzania Revenue Appeal Tribunal board member from Zanzibar; appointment of the Tanzania Insurance Deposits Board member from Zanzibar.
Others are the supervision of phone services tax calculation and collection by Zanzibar Revenue Board (ZRB); formation of the Joint Financial Commission and Vehicles Registration and revenue division between the two sides.
“However, the government has signed contract with the Saudi Funds on April 19, 2020 to implement road construction project from Chakechake to Wete Pemba and rehabilitation of the Mnazi Mmoja Hospital in Zanzibar.