Chadema plans meetings on Bunge events

Dar es Salaam. The Chadema secretariat will hold a series of meetings to discuss recent developments in and outside Parliament, the party said yesterday.

The party’s director of Information and Publicity, Mr John Mnyika, told reporters in Dar es Salaam that Chadema would also meet with others in the Opposition to discuss various issues of national interest.

The agenda would include the state of politics in the country and the process of writing the new constitution.

He said secretariat meetings would be chaired by the party’s secretary-general, Dr Willibrod Slaa.

He added that Chadema would also consult with various stakeholders. Mr Mnyika said the aim of the meetings was to arrive at a joint position on what transpired recently in Parliament and other issues of national concern.

“We believe that there is something behind these acts and the flagrant violation of rules in Parliament’s debating chamber...something is being hidden and we want to get to the bottom of this,” he said.

Mr Mnyika further said that after holding meetings with political parties and other stakeholders, they would come up with a common way forward on what needs to be done to address the situation.

“CCM has been using various tactics to weaken us especially in the ongoing process of writing the constitution...there have deliberate efforts to stop us from airing our views on the Bill for Amendment of the Constitutional Review Act 2013,” he said.

Among other things, the party will also discuss the decision by its MPs to walk out of Parliament and refuse to participate in the debate and endorsement of the Bill last week.

On Wednesday, Chadema and Civic United Front (CUF) legislators walked out following a fierce debate on what opposition MPs said was improper collection of views on the Bill.

In another development, CUF yesterday condemned Deputy Speaker Job Ndugai’s handling of House business last week.

CUF chairman Ibrahim Lipumba said Mr Ndugai was wrong to order the ejection from the debating chamber of the Leader of the Official Opposition in Parliament, Mr Freeman Mbowe.

He said the decision, which precipitated chaos, had hurt the dignity of opposition MPs and Parliament in general.

Prof Lipumba accused the Deputy Speaker of leading House business in an outdated style, saying what he did was unacceptable.

He said Mr Mbowe was supposed to be allowed to air his views by virtue of his position in Parliament.

“The Deputy Speaker has been unfair to opposition MPs. What happened to the Leader of the Official Opposition in Parliament could not have happened to the Prime Minister had he stood up to ask a question or seek some clarification,” said Prof Lipumba.

He said CCM had hijacked and was dominating the constitution writing process at the expense of other political parties.

“What the opposition is demanding is an inclusive process...that’s all,” he said.