Of cabinet reshuffles and the continued rumblings within CCM

President Samia Suluhu Hassan made what the media has described as a ‘minor’ cabinet reshuffle; so far the third reshuffle this year. Like her two immediate predecessors, they have failed to break former president Benjamin Mkapa’s record in office when it came to cabinet reshuffles. He remains as the president with the fewest so far. What generated a lot of buzz and made headlines were the name minister she dropped and some of her remarks at the swearing-in ceremony of the ministers who had been moved or newly appointed.

One publication described the dropped minister as being ‘principled, though politically inexperienced technocrat’. This is why the latest reshuffle came as a surprise. There were no hints, no anticipation in the air. Not even rumours that a reshuffle, ‘minor’ or otherwise was in the offing.

Given the opaque nature of these presidential appointments, there is bound to be a lot of rumours flying around each time appointments are made or the cabinet is reshuffled with some missing out completely or making a political comeback.

The president has, again, made use of the night in her latest appointments. Speaking at the swearing-in ceremony, she reminded leaders to be mindful of the limits of their authority, that they should not overstep their constitutional or legal bounds.

To some commentators, the latest reshuffle once again continued to signal the challenges the president has faced over her authority since taking power last year, with some linking some of what the president said with continued rumblings from within the ruling party, CCM and succession politics headed to 2025 and beyond. However, the latest reshuffle did not come from the political side. This one appears to be a matter of breached trust and protocol. It is the question of appointees overstepping their bounds but not necessarily challenging the president’s authority in the process.

The majority of those who were involved in the latest round of reshuffle are appointed politicians and have never been on a competitive political platform before nor are they involved in political activism. They are technocrats, not politicians.

The latest reshuffle is unlike the wide-ranging reshuffle that ushered in the New Year. That reshuffle had both, the political and technocratic aspects. It pointed to party politics as well as the technocratic aspect of running the government.

This time around, the political sides of things are focused elsewhere, with CCM busy going through its own intra-party elections throughout the country which in no way threatens the authority of the president who doubles as party’s national chairperson.

Again, this is speculation because it is rare for the appointing authority to give clarity on many things. This has served presidents-past and present-very well. It is also good politics because, after things have been patched up or political necessities arise, then the same individual who was dropped before makes a comeback with few concrete questions asked about their competence or lack thereof or the reasons why they were dropped in the first place. It remains a guessing game.

However, these many reshuffles, minus those which point to political wrangling within CCM, in a single calendar year lead to many questions.

Is it about those who are appointed failing to better understand the intentions of the appointing authority? Or, is it about the appointing authority not getting the best out the people she appoints? Is the current system of appointing individuals who are not vetted in public, regarding their competency for the roles they are appointed to, something to blame?

Or, perhaps, it all boils down to the political culture of the ruling party, CCM? That, the way it operates influences the government it forms to a great deal? After all, unlike the government, a political party requires a lot of backroom dealings to smooth things.

Reshuffles, regardless of their reasons assert the authority of the president over the administration she leads or at least the influence of the political powers behind the throne. The current team in place is hers in the sense that the reshuffles have put everyone on notice and all appointees now owe their places in the government to her, at least as the constitution is concerned.

With the political season beckoning ever closer, reshuffles will increasingly mirror the political realities within CCM and not the government, as the party and its chairperson places themselves for the bigger political contests down the line.