Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania on October 22, 2025.
Carrots and Stick: Election Heat Rises in Tanzania as Appeals for Peace Gather Steam
With one week remaining before Tanzania’s October 29 general election, the East African nation finds itself gripped by mounting political tensions as authorities intensify their crackdown on opposition voices whilst simultaneously rolling out populist measures aimed at ensuring voter turnout in what has become an increasingly uncompetitive race.
The systematic exclusion of the country’s main opposition parties has left President Samia Suluhu Hassan facing minimal electoral challenge, yet beneath the surface of this apparent political calm lies a volatile mix of public discontent, security concerns, and fears of low voter participation that could undermine the legitimacy of the electoral process.
The dismantling of viable opposition has been methodical and comprehensive. CHADEMA, the country’s main opposition party, has seen its national chairperson and potential presidential candidate, Tundu Lissu, detained on treason charges related to the party’s No Reforms, No Election campaign.
Its organisational capacity has been further weakened by the court injunction against its top brass to engage in any political activities, as well as heightened police crackdown on its leaders and members.
The fate of ACT Wazalendo, the second-largest opposition party, has been equally bleak. Its presidential candidate, Luhaga Mpina, endured a two-month legal battle that ended on October 16 when the High Court rejected his constitutional challenge to his disqualification by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
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CHADEMA’s John Heche Arrested in Dar, Moved to Tarime to Face Undisclosed Charges
John Heche, CHADEMA’s deputy chairperson (Tanzania Mainland), was arrested on Wednesday morning and subsequently transferred under police escort to the distant region of Mara, his lawyers have confirmed.
Heche was apprehended in the early hours of Wednesday, October 29, 2025, as he arrived at the Dar es Salaam sub-registry of the High Court in Kivukoni. He was there to follow a separate treason case involving the party’s national chairperson, Tundu Lissu.
According to Gaston Garubindi, a legal representative for CHADEMA, the police informed them that Heche was being taken to Tarime in Mara Region to “answer charges” against him. However, the authorities failed to specify the nature of these allegations or provide any formal documentation.
“Police say, in their own words, that they have already transported him,” Garubindi told journalists at the court. “It appears they had already arranged the logistics to move him, and they said they have taken him, although they did not specify the means of transport — whether by air or by road.”
The police have not issued any official public statement regarding Heche’s arrest or transfer.
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Treason Trial Teeters as Court Rejects Key Video Evidence Against Tundu Lissu
In a stunning blow to the state’s case, the High Court on Wednesday blocked the prosecution from submitting its central video evidence in the treason trial of CHADEMA national chairperson Tundu Lissu, ruling that the digital exhibits were presented by an unqualified witness.
The proceedings were preceded by a significant political development just minutes before the judges entered. John Heche, the Deputy Chairperson of CHADEMA for Tanzania Mainland, was apprehended by police outside the courthouse and taken to Mara region, the party said.
The arrest of such a high-ranking opposition leader, occurring at the very doors of the court, sent a wave of tension through the gathered crowd and underscored the politically charged atmosphere surrounding the trial.
Inside the courtroom, the drama continued. Before the session could formally begin, a man stood up and declared himself a prophet sent by God. He pleaded with the judges to hear him, stating that he had been divinely instructed to demand Tundu Lissu’s freedom. “I am a prophet, sent by God, free him, he is a man of God,” he proclaimed. The man, identified himself as Prophet Mshauri (counselor), told CHADEMA members that he had fasted and God had shown him that Lissu would emerge victorious today. He explained that since yesterday, he had tried to engage the court leadership unsuccessful.
As prison guards moved to detain him, he grew increasingly agitated, raising his voice and crying out, “Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!” in a fervent appeal before being physically carried out of the courtroom by the guards, his shouts echoing down the halls.
Long-awaited ruling
Once the order was restored, the three-judge bench, led by Judge Ndunguru, delivered its long-awaited ruling. The court focused on what it deemed the most critical question: the competence of the third prosecution witness, Inspector Samwel Elibariki Kaaya.
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Tanzania Introduces French, Chinese, and Arabic in Landmark Primary School Exams
In a significant educational shift, 115 primary schools across Tanzania have registered pupils to sit the Class Four National Assessments with new optional papers in French, Chinese, and Arabic.
The National Examinations Council of Tanzania (NECTA) confirmed the historic change, which is part of the first nationwide tests to be aligned with the new 2014 Education and Training Policy of 2023 and its revamped curriculum.
Prof Said Mohamed, the NECTA Executive Secretary, announced on Tuesday that the two-day exams begin today, October 22, 2025. A total of 1,582,140 pupils from 20,517 schools are registered for the Standard Four National Assessment (SFNA).
“For the first time, there will be three optional subjects, which are French, Chinese, and Arabic,” Prof Mohamed told journalists in Dar es Salaam. He clarified that each pupil can choose only one of the three new languages.
Of the 115 schools offering the new subjects, 58 have selected Arabic, 48 have chosen French, and nine will sit the Chinese paper.
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Op-Ed: Tanzania’s 2025 Elections Amid Questions on Digital and Press Freedom
The October 29th elections in Tanzania are being held against the backdrop of severe repression of the right to information online, owing to the zealous and unchecked enforcement of extralegal powers by the authorities, particularly the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) and the police force.
Clubhouse, a leading online debate and discussion forum, remains censored and restricted in the country since early 2023. In February 2023, it was reported that Clubhouse had been banned in the country. TCRA’s Director General Jabir Bakari was quoted as saying that the site had not been banned but was only unavailable on account of technical glitches.
To date, the platform cannot be accessed in Tanzania without use of a Virtual Private Network (VPN), which itself has been criminalised. The Open Observatory on Network Interference (OONI) reported that the site started presenting anomalies from August 13, 2023, onwards. Over the last four years, the platform has become increasingly important for both public debate and mobilisation.
On October 13, TCRA released a public notice calling on Tanzanians to register their use of Virtual Private Networks (VPN). Following the internet shutdowns of 2020 and escalated by the banning of hundreds of websites and social media accounts, Tanzanians had grown accustomed to the use of VPN to evade the erstwhile restrictions on the internet.
The Authority invoked regulation 16(2) of the Electronic and Postal Communications (Online Content) Regulations, 2020, which bars a person from rendering, possessing or distributing technology, programme, application or any other related thing that allows or helps users to have access to prohibited content.
It branded it as an offence punishable upon conviction, to a fine of not less than five million Tanzanian shillings or imprisonment for a term of not less than twelve months or both. It ultimately called on the general public, individuals, and companies who, by nature of their undertakings, the use of VPN is indispensable, to declare their VPN and all relevant information, including IP address, to the Authority by, or before October 30, 2023.
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