During the CCM Special National Congress, which concluded on January 19, 2024, President Samia Suluhu Hassan displayed a reflective and introspective demeanour. When she addressed the delegates, her tone was composed yet compelling, effectively capturing their attention.
The top officials of the CCM, seated on the main dais, listened attentively as she announced that she had chosen Dr Emmanuel Nchimbi as her running mate, replacing Dr Philip Mpango. The party delegates responded with joy and song at this announcement. Vice President Mpango extended his hand to Dr Nchimbi to congratulate him, as did Stephen Wassira, who had been elected as the party’s Vice Chairperson.
This year’s CCM Special National Congress has demonstrated President Samia’s political maturity and acumen in political strategy. The main agenda of the Special National Congress was to fill the vacant position of Vice Chairperson for Mainland Tanzania. However, through a carefully planned process, the Special convening endorsed President Samia as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2025 general elections. Traditionally, through an internal nomination process, CCM announces its presidential flagbearers for both Tanzania and Zanzibar in either June or July.
President Samia said that her Vice President, Dr Philip Mpango, had requested to resign due to health concerns. Following what she described as a consultative process with the top leaders of CCM, she selected Dr Emmanuel Nchimbi, the party’s Secretary General, as her running mate for the upcoming elections. While it may appear plausible that Dr Mpango requested to resign, one cannot overlook the strategic political manoeuvring orchestrated by President Samia and her close associates during this Special convention.
This is the earliest that CCM has settled on a presidential candidate, and it is also the first time that the process for collecting presidential nomination forms has been bypassed. This bold decision can be interpreted in two ways.
First, it suggests that President Samia has mastered the art of political manoeuvring to navigate the intricate dynamics and factions within CCM, effectively countering any potential obstacles to her candidacy in the 2025 elections. Secondly, it may indicate that CCM aims to project an image of unity as they approach the 2025 elections. Former President Jakaya Kikwete told delegates at the convention that CCM victory in 2025 was inevitable, chiding the opposition, who seemed disorganised and unprepared.
President Samia came into power as a political novice with little political capital. Her ascendancy to the presidency was rather fortuitous and a stroke of good luck. In her first address after being sworn in as president in March 2021, she admitted that some forces did not want her to be president. Last year, General Venance Mabeyo, the Chief of Defense Forces at the time of President John Magufuli’s death, shed light on the behind-the-scenes circumstances surrounding the murky transition following Magufuli’s death.
Samia, who was the Vice President at the time, was the last senior official to be informed about President Magufuli’s passing. Early in her presidency, President Samia faced the challenge of addressing her critics within both the government and the party. Although it was a difficult task, she gradually began to assert her authority as she worked to consolidate her position and tame Magufuli loyalists and nostalgics.
President Samia’s first significant purge targeted Dr Bashiru Ally, a strong ally of President Magufuli. In January 2022, Parliament Speaker Job Ndugai, who had been critical of Samia, resigned after making comments perceived as undermining the president’s agenda.
Through a series of cabinet reshuffles, President Samia aimed to recalibrate her team by reintroducing figures such as January Makamba, Nape Nnauye, and Abdulrahman Kinana, who President Magufuli had sidelined. In 2023, she brought Paul Makonda back into her administration, which seemed designed to consolidate her position in preparation for the 2025 elections. However, she later dismissed January Makamba and Nape Nnauye from the cabinet and accepted Kinana’s resignation, a marker of her growing political grit.
Vice President Philip Mpango is known for his calm and reserved demeanour. His appointment as Vice President by President Samia Suluhu Hassan in 2021 was largely welcomed, as he was viewed as a non-polarising figure despite having limited political experience.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr Mpango appeared at a press conference to dispel rumours about his death from the virus. Even though he seemed visibly unwell, he took the opportunity to honour leaders who had recently passed away allegedly from COVID-19. In 2023, he disappeared from the public again with rumours of his ailment before returning.
Dr Mpango’s decision to step aside as a potential running mate for Samia, if at all was voluntary and not coerced, has presented President Samia with an opportunity to appoint Dr Nchimbi. Dr Nchimbi has a wealth of political experience and an extensive and well-established political network.
He was part of Edward Lowassa’s team that failed in the CCM presidential nominations in 2015, after which he was sidelined from the party following the acrimony of the failed nomination. Dr Mpango’s decision to step aside and Samia’s choice of Nchimbi to fill the position suggests that she has set her ducks in a row for 2025 and maybe beyond.
Nicodemus Minde holds a PhD in International Relations from the United States International University- Africa, Nairobi. He can be reached at nminde96@gmail.com or on X at @decolanga. The opinions expressed here are the writer’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of The Chanzo. If you are interested in publishing in this space, please contact our editors at editor@thechanzo.com.
