Zanzibar’s First Vice President Othman Masoud declares bid for presidency
ACT- Wazalendo's Vice Chairman and Zanzibar's first Vice President Othman Masoud Othman addresses a rally at Makoba grounds in Bumbwini, Unguja.
What you need to know:
- As a leader and a native of Zanzibar, Mr Othman emphasises that the ruling party's outdated policies have impoverished the island.
Unguja. ACT Wazalendo Chairman Othman Masoud Othman has declared his intention of running for the Zanzibar presidency in the upcoming general election, contingent on his party’s approval and endorsement to serve residents of Zanzibar.
Mr Othman, who also serves as Zanzibar’s First Vice President, revealed his intention during a press conference yesterday, calling 2025 the "year of decisions."
He criticized President Hussein Ali Mwinyi’s four-year administration, pointing out issues with corruption in public funds, particularly in development projects, where tenders are neither publicly advertised nor fairly contested.
However, the Zanzibar Revolutionary Government’s (SMZ) Spokesperson, Mr Charles Hillary, dismissed those allegations, stating that President Mwinyi would soon respond to those claims in a press conference.
"What Othman is saying is nothing new; the President has already responded. Regarding the tender issue, with the situation being as it is, tenders floated in January should be expected to be concluded in September which is unhealthy for the government which would like to see things moving fast. However, the President will address it," stated, Mr Hillary.
Othman declares presidential bid
Mr Othman shared that after a self-assessment, he realized that although he is not perfect as a human being, he was capable of leading Zanzibar toward a thriving future.
“I am here today to officially announce that, InshaAllah, when the time comes for the intra-party presidential candidate nomination, I will request ACT Wazalendo to entrust me with the responsibility of leading the party in Zanzibar's presidential race,” he said.
"When the time comes, I will ask the people of Zanzibar to give ACT Wazalendo the mandate to lead them towards development, true freedom, and prosperity," added Mr Othman.
Further, he said the ten months ahead of this year’s General Election would be used to inform the Zanzibaris that successful island nations including Mauritius, Singapore, Seychelles, Hong Kong, and Taiwan didn’t achieve success through corrupt ideologies, but through governance-focused on integrity and accountability.
As a leader and a native of Zanzibar, Mr Othman emphasised that the ruling party's outdated policies had impoverished the island.
He argued that focusing on broader economic interests and well-being, rather than controlling Zanzibar, was essential for the nation's progress.
"We enter this new year with one goal—to rescue Zanzibar from a government rooted in corruption, which has stolen the hopes of our economy and citizens' rights. We’ve witnessed the struggles, including political violence since 1992, when the first victim of political violence was killed simply for raising a political party's flag," he said.
GNU's weaknesses
Mr Othman also criticised the slow progress of the Government of National Unity (GNU), attributing its stagnation to the government’s lack of genuine cooperation with ACT Wazalendo.
He noted the party had been excluded from key matters as expected.
"The deadlock in the GNU is due to a lack of genuine intent. The constitutional amendment envisioned cooperation between the parties, but our colleagues are not following through. It was agreed that if a local government chairman is from CCM, the vice-chairman would be from ACT Wazalendo,” he shared.
“Likewise, committee vice-chairpersons in the House of Representatives were to be from our party, but this has not been the case," explained Mr Othman.
