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Spectre of violence threatensTarime on polls day
2005-10-27 06:53:54
By Lawi Joel
Residents of Tarime District north of Tanzania are sitting on a potent, sizzling volcano that the District Commissioner Paschal Mabiti says is threatening the highly industrious community with a disastrous civil eruption on the general elections day.
However, without panic, Mabiti observes all the political hot air with the content of a general who knows his bark alone is enough to restore calm.
’We are ready for it,’ he told The Guardian earlier this month at his office in Tarime, some 18 miles from Tanzania’s border with Kenya.
Above this imminent danger Tarime, the districts headquarters, buzzes with robust business.
Cyclists, carrying several hands of bananas on their bicycles in a way that can only be achieved through pressure of object poverty and demand to carry as many bananas as possible in their quest for fast money to alleviate pangs of hunger.
And so, loaded with two hands of bananas on each side of the carrier and one or two on the carrier if the sizes allow him to carry six, the man swishes down the steep hills, expertly dodging a bump or a rock.
The town’s market to where they take bananas from the hills is a wash with many species of fish from Lake Victoria about 40 km away.
With all the explosive state and political hot air Tarime is more firmly united with its Mara Region headquarters of Musoma than in the 90s by new trunk road completed a couple of years ago.
The once tedious 87km-journey between the town and the regional headquarters by lake Victoria takes less than an hour today.
Previous to the construction of the tarmac road the journey took about four hours.
Even quiet today is the gold-rich location of Nyamongo that has always threatened the district with explosions of violence and some bloodbath, leaving the people reeling with political high fever.
The positive change has left Tarime licking its slowly but surely healing wounds.
Residents of Nyabigina a village in Nyamango, who once clamoured for relocation compensations from the Australia-owned Africa Mashariki Gold Mine now property of Placer Dome of Canada, are quiet today.
’They are happy with the payments. You can’t convince them to do otherwise,’ A once senior official with the company Josephat Mwita, explains.
Mabiti regards the development with satisfaction and says, ’The situation is better now.’
But all this tranquility, joy and steady economic prosperity belies the potential danger of a civil strife that could make Tarime a non-habitable town even to its hot-blooded community, turning its economic progress into reverse.
What threatens Tarime’s calm is antagonism between the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) and the opposition Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA).
The relationship between the two parties has caused peace of the district see-sawing from good to worse with the worst expected on the polls day.
Mabiti says the opposition bank their hope on the division amidst CCM. ’They will therefore cause violence if they lose,’ he explains.
In fact the provincial political wire is so that it could snap any time, leaving Tarime bleeding badly.
’No flashing partisan signs like the ’V’ and no wearing green of the ruling CCM here,’ says Protus Kongocha Tanzania Telecommunication’s official and resident of the district.
Unconfirmed reports say that a son of Mabiti was beaten severely by members of the Chadema.
By the look of things, Chadema’s chances of beating CCM in Tarime for the post of MP are high.
’Chacha Wangwe will beat the incumbent Kisien Chambin for the post of Tarime’s MP,’ observes Mwita Gabiria, repairer of bicycles in the town.
Most Tarime residents say they will vote for Wangwe of the opposition Chadema because he has raised funds for construction of schools and other facilities.
Chacha has been close the people and enabled implementation of a couple of projects and so he delivers, they say.
’If he can do so much when he is just a simple person he will definitely do much more if we elect him our MP,’Gabiri says.
The present Tarime’s MP Kisieri Chambin is reported to have done nothing in all the 15 years he has represented the district. Mostly, they say, he has lied to them and given them empty promises.
What has angered many Tarime residents is Chambiri’s brazen declaration one resident who demanded anonymity calls contempt.
”Chambiri has bragged that we shall accept him as our representative willy-nilly for eternity. That is sheer obstinacy,” says the man.
Mabiti admits the race between Chambiri and Chacha will be hard. But if CCM loses it will have nobody but itself to blame ”for not giving the people a candidate they like.”
The DC says he suspects the application of ’this new type of gift called takrima’ at the preferential votes’ stage.’I doubt if it was well used,’ he the says.
Violence is likely to be on the poll day when, according to reports, youths of Chadema will go early to voting centres and remain there to cause chaos.
They also plan to position themselves at strategic routes to block voters from reaching polls stations.
’We have uncovered plans by the opposition in Sirari and Tarime town to burn houses,’ Mabiti reveals.
The discovery has prompted the authorities of the district to reinforce security to ’ensure there is no chaos between homes and polling stations.’
The DC’s team and the Electoral Commission are getting ready for possible nasty eventualities.
’We have told the people to disperse immechately after voting and go home,’ says Mabiti.
Still, despite the measures to ensure peace, the authorities fear that the centre might not hold, leaving things falling apart.
Should that happen, ’The government is prepared to deal with this in the strongest terms possible,’ Mabiti warns, adding that he cannot allow disorder just because someone has lost the election.
The rivalry between Chacha wangwe and Kisieri Chambiri for the MP post, Tarime residents say they are united in their choice for the presidential candidate. ’Kikwete is our president,’declares Silus Maisa, a Nyamongo resident.
’We won’t vote for anybody else but him. For the MP, however, we will give Wangwe our votes.’
Nevertheless, suspicions are rife that there could be rigging or forgery. Measures to prevent that are already in place.
Mabiti believes such a vice cannot take place except for a strong collusion between the forger and members of the Commission, a thing he says is highly unlikely.
’If anybody is planning such an evil this time, that person will find it a hopelessly impossible task,’ he adds.
Except for the spectre of the political monster on the polls day, Mabiti, proud of his districts achievements, rests assured that Tarime is more peaceful, a better place to live.
Mining in the district has taken many able-bodied youths once idle and dangerous as potential criminals who resorted to stealing livestock at night, a daredevil traditional crime in which many in the district strove to excel.
Seemingly, that evil has receded into the mist of times, making the DC slouch back in his seat.
’I can now sleep with comfort,’ he observes with a smile, ’I still have some problem with Trans Mara of Kenya, however, by and large, all is well. No more cattle rustling.’
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