Unguja. The President of Zanzibar and Chairman of the Revolutionary Council, Dr Hussein Ali Mwinyi, has appointed various leaders to serve in the House of Representatives.
In a statement issued on Monday, September 14, 2026, by Chief Secretary Mansura Mosi Kassim, President Mwinyi appointed Hassan Ali Hassan as Secretary of the House of Representatives.
Before the new appointment, Mr Hassan served as Director of the Department of Legislative Drafting in the Attorney General's Office.
Ramadhan Khamis Juma had been serving as Acting Secretary of the House of Representatives after President Mwinyi appointed the previous office holder, Raya Issa Msellem, as a Judge of the High Court of Zanzibar.
Alongside the appointment of the Secretary, President Mwinyi also appointed two members of the opposition ACT Wazalendo, Nassor Ahmed Mazrui and Omar Said Shaaban, as new members of the House of Representatives.
The statement noted that the appointments took effect today, Monday, September 14, 2026, and that all the appointed leaders are required to report to the House of Representatives on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, during the ongoing session.
Mr Mazrui and Mr Omar both served as ministers during President Mwinyi's first-term administration.
Mr Omar, who is currently ACT Wazalendo’s Attorney General has also been appointed to the Joint Committee, served during that period as Minister of Trade and Industrial Development.
Mr Mazrui, who has also held various positions within ACT Wazalendo, including Deputy Secretary General for Zanzibar, served as Minister of Health during that period.
The ministries currently being run in an acting capacity while awaiting substantive ministers are Health, Trade and Industries, Tourism and Antiquities, and the First Vice President's Office.
The appointments signal that the four ministerial positions awaiting ACT Wazalendo nominees may soon be filled.
The move comes shortly after President Mwinyi launched the Joint Committee at State House, Zanzibar.
The committee will oversee implementation of the Joint Declaration as the parties work towards forming a Government of National Unity (GNU).
The formation of the GNU in Zanzibar is provided by the 10th Amendment to the 1984 Zanzibar Constitution, passed in 2010 following a public referendum.
The Constitution provides for a GNU in which the President shall appoint a First Vice President from the political party that came second in the presidential election, provided that the party secured at least 10 percent of all presidential votes.
Under the GNU system, Section 66(4) of the Constitution directs that the President shall appoint two members after consulting the First Vice President, who comes from the opposition party.
The First Vice President position has remained vacant due to the political stalemate that followed the General Election.
This led to the Joint Declaration and the formation of a committee to address the identified challenges, after which the President received the names submitted by the respective party and confirmed the appointments.
The appointments aim to strengthen cooperation among parties in government and ensure the opposition party's voice is represented in the House of Representatives and the Government as a whole.
