Dar es Salaam. The High Court in the city will on Thursday hear a petition that three Tanzanians have filed seeking leave to challenge the recently made local government elections announcement indicating that the relevant minister will oversee the elections due to happen on November 27, 2025.
Bob Chacha Wangwe, Bubelwa Kaiza, and Ananilea Nkya have filed a petition against the Minister of State in the President’s Office—Regional Administration and Local Governments (PO-RALG) and Attorney General, arguing that the announcement is illegal as the minister has no mandate to coordinate, organise, and supervise the civic elections.
Mohammed Mchengerwa, the respective minister, announced on August 15, 2024, that Tanzanians on the Mainland will go to the poll on November 27, 2024, to vote for local government representatives, including street, village, and hamlet chairpersons and members of their respective consultative councils in elections that aim to transfer power to the people.
However, Judge Wilfred Dyansobera will hear miscellaneous civil cause No. 19721 of 2024, in which the petitioners’ attorney, Mpale Mpoki, will ask for the court’s permission to challenge the legality of the minister to supervise the elections.
Mr Wangwe told The Chanzo that he and his co-petitioners believe that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is the sole authority in the country to undertake the assignment. They’ll appeal to the court to grant them leave to challenge the legality of the government’s announcement in the presence of a law that directs otherwise.
READ MORE: Tanzania Announces Local Govt Elections Amid Opposition’s Protests Against Overseeing Authorities
“The 2019 experience shows that the PO-RALG cannot supervise the local government elections in free and fair manners,” Mr Wangwe, a human rights activist, said in an interview. “We cannot expect a minister with vested political interests to oversee a fair and just electoral system. We want the INEC to supervise the elections.”
Massive irregularities marred the 2019 civic elections, including arbitrary disqualification of opposition candidates and many other mistreatments, which forced the main opposition party, CHADEMA, to withdraw. As anticipated, the ruling Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) “won” in a landslide, taking 99 per cent of all contested seats.
Authorities continued to allow PO-RALG to supervise civic elections despite overwhelming scientific evidence showing that the practice violates acceptable democratic principles, demanding that the organ that manages an election not side with any of the contestants and is above political parties.
Taking advantage of legal and political reforms that President Samia Suluhu Hassan announced immediately after coming to power, stakeholders pushed for an end to this practice, culminating in a new piece of legislation that handed over the role to the newly formed Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Notwithstanding the new legal requirements, authorities appear to proceed with the November elections under the previous arrangement, inviting criticisms from political parties and other key democratic actors in the country. Opposition ACT-Wazalendo party has described authorities’ attempt to act unlawfully as unacceptable, urging the government to uphold the rule of law.
CHADEMA, Tanzania’s leading opposition party, has also objected to authorities’ decision to let PO-RALG supervise the local government elections, saying that they’ll not sit idly and let the 2019 experience repeat itself.
Both CHADEMA and ACT-Wazalendo are contemplating similar judicial paths to prevent PO-RALG from supervising the November elections. None has, however, announced to boycott the processes, at least for now.
