Lukuvi criticised over remark

A minister’s statement on a  military takeover should Tanzania adopt a three-government constitution has been sharply condemned.

The minister of state in the Prime Minister’s Office (Policy, Coordination and Parliament), Mr William Lukuvi, was quoted recently by our sister paper Mwananchi as pleading with Methodist Church faithful to reject the three-tier government system because it  was unacceptable and would lead to a military takeover.

Human rights activists have termed such utterances “alarming.”

“He has failed the nation and he has put us to shame,” Sikika executive director  Irenei Kiria said.  Mr Lukuvi has maintained that he believed what he said was true.

He went on explaining that his statement was based on his own personal fear, which “is also gripping many Tanzanians.”

With the three-tier Union model, he said the federal government would have insufficient funds to  run state organs, including armed forces.

Mr Kiria said Mr Lukuvi was instilling fear among Tanzanians.  “To think of abandoning a three-government union based only on the reason of insufficient sources of revenue is superficial.

The ruling party and its government should tell us how much will be needed to run the Union government. Based on that information, wananchi will see whether the cost proposed is realistic or not. By so doing, it will be possible to propose more sources of revenue to bridge the shortfall if any. Simply saying that funds will be inadequate to run the government is improper,” he said.

He urged Mr Lukuvi to take responsibility for his statements.  He said if, indeed, he gave the remarks in the church and linked the proposal for a three-government union with the possible dissolution of the current Union and subsequent establishment of an Islamic state by  Zanzibar that was an act of gross irresponsibility.

“He has failed the government whose policy is secularism and he has indirectly incited confrontation between Muslims and Christians during this process of writing the new constitution. Zanzibaris have the right of self-determination and I am yet to see evidence that the three-tier Union will automatically dissolve the current union. Such devising statements have led to ethnic conflicts in many countries in the world.

“Lukuvi, and indeed his like-minded colleagues must know better.”

The chairman of the Constitution Forum of Tanzania, Mr Deus Kibamba, called on Mr Lukuvi to retract his remarks and apologise.

“This is an indication of how much we need the new constitution because when you have people in a country who do wrong things and refuse to admit and apologise means that some people think they are above the law. To me such people are dangerous,” he said.

“Therefore I urge Mr Lukuvi to admit that his statements were a slip of the tongue.”

The coalition of civil societies called on Constituent Assembly  chairman Samuel Sitta to take measures against members who were insulting or threatening their fellow members and the public in general.