Unguja. The fate of the Government of National Unity (GNU) in Zanzibar has been placed in the hands of 10 political heavyweights appointed to the Joint Negotiation Committee on cooperation.
The appointment of the committee members has drawn mixed reactions, with some praising it, while others have expressed concern and criticised the selection made by Zanzibar President Dr Hussein Ali Mwinyi.
Those appointed to the committee are ACT-Wazalendo Deputy Secretary General for Zanzibar Omar Ali Shehe (co-chairperson) and CCM Deputy Secretary General for Zanzibar Abdi Mahmoud Abdi (co-chairperson).
The members from CCM are Dr Khalid Salum Mohamed (Minister of Construction and Transport), Najma Murtaza Giga (MP who is also Parliament Chairperson), Mgeni Hassan Juma (retired Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives), and Mohamed Nur Mohamed.
Members from ACT-Wazalendo are Masoud Ali Mohamed (House of Representatives Member), Omar Said Shaaban (ACT-Wazalendo Attorney General), Fatma Abdulhabib Fereji (passed as ACT-Wazalendo presidential running mate in 2025) and Said Ali Mbarouk (House of Representatives Member).
Aside from the bigwigs, President Mwinyi has appointed the committee’s secretariat featuring four members: Hamid Saleh Mhina, Mohamed Yusuf Nuh, Ali Salim Khamis and Abdalla Mussa Hijja.
He also appointed committee secretaries Mwalimu Ali Mwalimu and Seif Khamis Mohamed.
The committee was appointed two months after a joint agreement reached on July 9, 2026, between the ruling CCM and the opposition ACT-Wazalendo.
The appointment was made based on recommendations from the two political parties to further implement their jointly agreed work agenda.
All of them were appointed on Sunday, September 13, 2026, and their appointment notice was signed by Zanzibar Chief Secretary Mansura Mosi Kassim.
The members are expected to be sworn in tomorrow, Monday, September 14, 2026, at Zanzibar State House.
The foundation of these talks is what happened during the October 29, 2025 general election.
According to the 1984 Zanzibar Constitution, a party securing 10 percent of the vote must be part of the Government of National Unity, joining the party that won the general election.
In those results, CCM emerged victorious by gaining 74.8 percent of all votes, followed by ACT-Wazalendo, which garnered 23.22 percent, enabling it to join the GNU.
However, despite meeting that constitutional criterion and the 2018 election law, ACT-Wazalendo did not enter the GNU, and its leaders repeatedly stated that entering or not entering the GNU was not their priority due to disagreements over the conditions, the manner of forming the GNU, and the legitimacy and conduct of the 2025 election, thus demanding reforms.
Due to this situation, the two parties entered negotiations where, among other things, they agreed to form a committee to oversee the agreements they would reach, which was formed on September 13.
Political analysts
However, the appointment of the committee has sparked debate among political analysts and activists, including Prof Ali Makame Ussi, who questioned the legitimacy and goals of the committee, claiming it appears to target the interests of only two parties rather than the nation.
He said this reconciliation process appears to go against the requirements of the Zanzibar Constitution, which directs the procedure for forming a government after an election where the runner-up party must submit names of the First Vice President and representatives to be appointed ministers.
Prof Makame stated that forming these committees instead of following constitutional procedures is a breach of the Constitution and could lead to a court case regarding a constitutional crisis.
Another issue raised is the marginalisation of other political parties and more than 10 institutions left outside this reconciliation process.
"A decision made by people from only two parties cannot be considered the stance of all Zanzibaris," he said.
However, Prof Mohamed Makame Haji described the appointment as a major step in strengthening the GNU and bringing political stability.
He said the process is crucial in addressing existing discontent among some individuals, a matter that affected full participation in the government.
"Zanzibar politics has a direct connection to the Constitution; without firm reconciliation, the constitutional requirement to have a Government of National Unity cannot be fully realized," said Prof Haji.
The political expert emphasised that reconciliation is not merely a political issue, but the foundation of the country's stability and broad development.
"We are not saying that development is unseen right now... but that legitimacy of saying people sat together, reconciled, work together, and bring development together in their country is what is being looked at," he said.
Matters to be overseen
In the joint statement, there are seven matters to be overseen by the formed committee, including the Government of National Unity, putting Zanzibar’s broader interests first, good governance, respect for the country’s fundamentals, and talks, cooperation, and implementation of the reconciliation agenda.
Process they went through
Following the conclusion of the October 29, 2025 General Election and CCM being declared the winner, according to the 2010 edition of the Zanzibar Constitution, ACT-Wazalendo was required to submit the name of the First Vice President and names for the appointment of two ministers.
However, the party refused to do so over what it claimed was disagreement with how the election was conducted, thus wanting changes made to certain matters.
To reach a consensus, CCM and ACT-Wazalendo held talks from November 9, 2025, to July 9, 2026, when a ceremony was held to sign the joint political reconciliation statement between the two sides.
Various leaders attended the event, including President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who in her speech said reconciliation is not weakness but political maturity building foundations of unity and mutual respect.
"This courteous direction we witnessed today (July 9, 2026) opens another page in strengthening unity, peace, solidarity, and stability of the citizens of Zanzibar and Tanzania overall; these efforts should be sustained and cherished," she said.
Not a new step
It is not the first time Zanzibar has had political reconciliation between CCM and the opposition.
It has happened several times before, including between CCM and the Civic United Front (CUF).
The first reconciliation was in 2001 between the sixth President, Amani Abeid Karume, and Seif Sharif Hamad while serving as CUF Secretary General after the 2000 general election, with the United Nations overseeing those talks.
The second time was in 2010, involving President Amani Abeid Karume and Seif Sharif Hamad as CUF Secretary General.
In 2016, talks took place under seventh-phase President Dr Ali Mohamed Shein and Seif Sharif Hamad after the 2015 general election was nullified by the Zanzibar Electoral Commission (ZEC) after Mr Hamad declared himself the winner.
When the election was rerun, CUF did not participate in the repeat polls, so during the second phase of Dr Shein’s administration, there was no GNU.
The 2020 talks involved Zanzibar President Dr Mwinyi and Mr Hamad, then serving as leader of ACT-Wazalendo, while the current 2025/26 talks have involved President Mwinyi and ACT-Wazalendo chairman, Othman Masoud Othman.
