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Corruption disturbs veteran UWT leader Leah Lupembe
2007-12-16 15:22:36
By Staff Writer Imani Lwinga
The women`s wing of the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) party, UWT (Umoja wa Wanawake Tanzania), which came into being in 1962, was preceded by a section that dealt with women`s affairs.
Its third Secretary General was Mama Leah Lupembe, now 70 but still going strong. Staff Writer Peter Msungu chanced to speak to her this week. Read on…
``Right from Day one, UWT was tasked with the responsibility of mobilising women, to enable them understand their rights and their place in society,`` narrates Leah Lupembe, adding that the organization was to mobilise women all over the country and persuade them to join TANU, the precursor to CCM.
The response was great, she says, but notes that while the going was smooth during Phase One, things started going haywire during the successive phases, up to the current fourth one.
Mama Lupembe laments the trend of the rich getting richer while the poor get poorer, plus the intrusion of negative tendencies like corruption.
These, she says are ruining the economy. She stresses that President Jakaya Kikwete, who appears to be lone soldier, should be fully supported in his war against economic saboteurs.
A teacher by profession, Mama Lupembe was appointed Third Secretary General of UWT, in 1963, after a brief stay at the Uhuru Girls School, Dar es Salaam, where she was Headmistress. She had been moved from Kidugalo, Njombe district, where she was Head teacher.
``In fact I have never discovered the person who recommended me to be Secretary General. I only guess that my frequent attendances at the then TANU and later CCM meetings, could have contributed to my being chosen,`` Lupembe said.
On completion of three years in this job, she was transferred to the Ministry of Education and Culture to work as Administrative officer but to her utter surprise, she was served with a letter posting her to Mozambique where she was to work as consultant on Women Affairs.
She was in Mozambique for two years after which she came back and was appointed Dar es Salaam regional cultural officer attached to the Tanzania Film Censor board as Secretary.
Commenting on the difference between the current UWT and that of the early sixties and seventies, the courageous former teacher had this to say:
``Ours operated under one roof. It was under one Party system as against now when UWT operates under multipartism, where each party has a women wing.
But women could still talk with one voice despite belonging to different parties as was the case at the historic Beijing Conference in 1995,`` says the still going strong Mama Lupembe, adding that at the Beijing Conference women from all over the world with different ideologies, were able to reach decisions on a number of things affecting women globally.
On things that put her off, she says she hates to hear there are some schools in this country lacking pit latrines or school buildings that are dilapidated beyond repair. This is a big shame, she remarks.
Mama Lupembe who remains a CCM stalwart, is a member of a number of NGOs, Boards and institutions. Lastly, but not least: ``Why is it that there are no orphanage centres in all regions and districts?`` she asks, and declares, ``This is very possible and it can easily be done.``
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