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Z’bar govt flopping on JK’s speed - Hamad
2006-04-10 08:50:38
By Ludger Kasumuni, back from Zanzibar
The Civic United Front (CUF), has said the Government of Zanzibar (SMZ) is ’a flop’ in implementing the leadership style under President Jakaya Kikwete’s ideology of new zeal, vigor and speed.
Addressing a huge public rally at Kibandamaiti ground in Zanzibar at the weekend, CUF Secretary General, Seif Shariff Hamad, said that SMZ under Zanzibar President Amani Abeid Karume had failed to tackle the problem of chronic corruption, which had caused deepening economic crisis.
Hamad said the decision to postpone the project on the refurbishment of Zanzibar Airport due to bad tendering process had demonstrated SMZ was still ’paying a lip service to corruption,’ instead of taking concrete action.
He cited the cases for the halting of projects for renovation of Zanzibar ports and airports, and alleged that the projects were affected by bribery in the tendering process.
He also alleged that there were billions of shillings, which were wasted as a result of exempting some investors from paying electricity bills without, sound reasons.
’The SMZ is yet to tackle the chronic problems affecting Zanzibar residents. They are just paying lip services to those problems.
Corruption is still ruining the Zanzibar economy.
Economic crisis is deepening as shown by skyrocketing of prices of basic consumer goods,” Hamad said.
He praised President Kikwete in recognising that there is still a political rift between Unguja and Pemba, which must be bridged, saying that he was ready to support him in tackling such a problem.
But he said the rift was artificial in that some politicians within SMZ created it for their personal motives, because Zanzibaris had been unified for many years.
He reiterated his stand that the last October general elections in Zanzibar was not free and fair, calling for re-run of it under the supervision of the United Nations, like what had been done in Indonesia.
Hamad further said CUF was against the new identity cards for Zanzibar residents, because they were issued without proper procedures agreed by the stakeholders.
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