Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania on September 29, 2025.
Suspects in Brutal Tanzanian Student Murder Killed in Custody; Police Warn Youth with Security Training from Institutions Like JKT to Avoid Criminality
Three suspects in the kidnapping and murder of a 21-year-old law student have died whilst attempting to escape police custody.
Mbeya Regional Police Commander Benjamin Kuzaga said that two of the suspects, Edward Christopher Kayuni and Websta William Mwantebele, were killed by gunshot wounds during their attempted escape after being arrested on September 25, 2025, and September 27, 2025, while the third suspect reportedly died after jumping from a moving car.
The first to be arrested was Marwa Nyahega John (25) on September 24, 2025 who confessed and mentioned names of the two other suspects Websta William Mwantebele (27) and Edward Christopher Kayuni.
The second suspect Websta Mwantebele was arrested on September 25, 2025, after interrogation he took the police to Charangwa village where police claim the suspects were planning to meet there so as to go into hiding. At the meeting point, when Mwantebele pointed to Edward Kayuni, police claimed that Kayuni tried to attack the police.
Read the full article here.
On a Tightrope: The Perilous Life of Tanzania’s Independent Musicians
For decades, Vitali Maembe has been a singular voice in the Tanzanian music scene. A graduate of the Bagamoyo College of Arts, his unique blend of inland and coastal rhythms, infused with poetic and often provocative lyrics, has earned him international acclaim and a dedicated following at home.
But behind the accolades lies a story of struggle, one that reflects the harsh realities faced by many independent artists in the country.
In an interview with The Chanzo published on September 29, 2025, Maembe laid bare the economic and social consequences of his politically conscious music.
“When you advise or publicly criticise the system, there are things you will miss out on,” he explained. “You will lack cooperation in many things from the government, from the leadership in the environment you live in, but also even from your relatives and friends who have been instilled with fear.”
Maembe recounted how he has been systematically denied government work and even private gigs, with event organisers fearing repercussions for hiring a government critic.
Read the full article here.
CHAUMMA Says Vehicle of Presidential Candidate Stoned in Iringa
The opposition party CHAUMMA has reported that the vehicle belonging to its presidential candidate, Salum Mwalimu, was stoned in Iringa during a campaign trail.
“We arrived in Iringa tonight, coming from Mbarali, and we decided to spend the night in Iringa, which was not planned earlier. When we dropped off the Presidential candidate, Salum Mwalimu, at the hotel, as his car was leaving to take his other assistants to look for rooms, right near his hotel, his car was hit with something believed to be a stone, breaking the rear window,” CHAUMMA spokesperson Jon Mrema said in a statement.
Mrema, who also serves as the campaign manager, said four young men were apprehended by party assistants and handed over to the police, including the OCD, who arrived at the scene.
CCM Youth Leader Takes Issue with Archbishop Wolfgang Pisa’s Remarks
The National Chairperson of the youth wing of Tanzania’s ruling party CCM (UVCCM), Mohammed Ali Kawaida, has expressed disappointment over remarks by the President of the Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC), Archbishop Wolfgang Pisa, during the centenary celebrations of Kipalapala Major Seminary in Tabora last week.
Kawaida, addressing reporters in Tanga on Monday, September 29, 2025 accused Archbishop Pisa of making ‘divisive’ statements, contrary to the role of religious leaders as unifiers of the nation.
“Instead of promoting reconciliation and unity, we have heard a voice of exclusion, forgetting truth, creating a spirit that goes against cohesion,” said Kawada, “this is something our country has always fought against and overcome, as we have seen its destructive consequences elsewhere.”
Archbishop Pisa, in his September 25, 2025 sermon during the Jubilee Mass, stressed the Catholic Church’s strict ban on clergy, priests and nuns’ involvement in partisan politics.
“It is forbidden for a priest, it is forbidden for a nun, it is forbidden for you seminarians to be seen in political campaigns. A great prohibition. We are not supposed to be seen there,” he warned.
Read the full story here.
This is it for today, and we hope you enjoyed our briefing. Please consider subscribing to our newsletter (see left), following us on X (Twitter) (here), or you can support us (here). And if you have any questions or comments, please drop a word to our editors at editor@thechanzo.com.
