Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania on June 26, 2024.
Traders strike continues in Dar es Salaam, Mbeya, Dodoma, and Mwanza
One day after the Kariakoo traders’ strike began, traders in the Mwanza, Dodoma, and Mbeya regions have initiated a similar strike, citing excessive taxes and fees, while demanding the government create a conducive environment for doing business.
The excessive taxation issue was the main cause of the strike that occurred in Dar es Salaam on June 24, 2024, which led to the Minister of Planning and Investment, Professor Kitila Mkumbo to announce the suspension of electronic fiscal device (EFD) receipt inspections, urging traders to end their strike.
The root issue behind the strike is the operation by TRA especially in Kariakoo where many traders secure their goods and also the proposals in the finance bill which is set to increase the fine by up to Tshs. 20,000,000 for traders failing to provide EFD receipts.
On various occasions, traders explain that the cat-mouse game between them and the authorities will not end, as the tax system forces them to avoid issuing receipts citing that the system fails from importation where there are no clear set benchmarks on the amount to be taxed, but the estimates depend on TRA officers. Traders want the system to be streamlined from entry borders, to make sure that everyone can know the clear tax amount even before they order any goods.
This is not the first strike for the Kariakoo area; in 2023, these traders closed their businesses for four days and later reopened following promises from the Prime Minister that the government would address their challenges.
As the complaints from customers and dependents of the Kariakoo market in Dar es Salaam continue, traders at the Kabwe, Sido, and Mwanjelwa markets in Mbeya also closed their shops and halted services on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, citing the same issues of excessive taxes and various charges.
Book bans and moral panic in Tanzania: Is it why they want to ban the internet too?
Given the furore over books in our schools and our society, I would like to provide some historical background. This is by no means the first time this has happened, and as in the past, we need to ensure that the debate provides more light and less heat.
I was privileged enough to join the English Language Panel at the Institute of Education in the 1970s. The 1970s was a time of great educational innovation after Tanzania ditched the Cambridge system to develop its own.
And, at least in my subjects, English and Literature in English, the results were spectacular. At the lower secondary school level, students had to read many literature texts even in their language courses, and all the texts on the syllabus were African.
Instead of William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens, we had Chinua Achebe, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, Okot p’Bitek, Mongo Beti and a whole host of African writers. At high school, there was a mixture of the best world literature, including African literature with writers such as Ngũgĩ, Achebe (again) Wole Soyinka, Alex La Guma, Henrik Ibsen, Bertolt Brecht, Arthur Miller, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Chinese short stories as well as non-fiction including Julius Nyerere, Malcolm X, Frantz Fanon, Nelson Mandela among others.
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There are many reasons why youth should participate in elections as voters and candidates. here are some of them
As Tanzania prepares for its upcoming election season, with local government elections scheduled for this year and general elections next year, it is crucial to not only encourage the youth to vote but also to inspire them to run for office.
Historically, young people have exhibited voter apathy and have preferred appointed positions over elected ones. Addressing these trends by fostering greater youth engagement in the electoral process is essential for the nation’s democratic future.
Their involvement in voting and running for office is crucial for several reasons, ranging from fostering inclusive governance to addressing contemporary issues with fresh perspectives.
According to the national census conducted by the government in 2022, there are 20,532,495 Tanzanians aged 15-34, comprising approximately one-third of Tanzania’s total population of 61,741,120.
This demographic will be most affected by the National Development Vision 2050, which is currently being formulated. Therefore, it is essential for this group to actively participate in electing leaders who will oversee the plan’s implementation and to consider running for office themselves to directly influence its execution.
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One Response
It’s good to see concerns about young people getting involved in politics, electing and being elected. I agree with President KIkwette: this culture needs to be developed from the school system and social development in the community.
Our Education for Self Reliance philosophy had the best exposure to politics, development and underdevelopment, and to ways of empowering people to get off the shackles of poverty and oppression into prosperity. Youth learned manual labour skills, arguments and debate, and from the African literature books, they acquired knowledge of history and struggles of Africans. This is now very weak in the education system. Despite current efforts to vocationalise, the changes made in the curriculum are very RAW and untested, and a culture of naivety, apathy, begging, dishonesty and laziness is growing rapidly among our youths. Many think that being lazy and being seen as a blind supported of a political party will land you into position of a ‘good appointment” in the system. You get noticed by hard work and honesty; not by boot licking!
We must fight this culture in the schools, universities, and in the government.
Simplicity is the enemy of the truth; but afriend of change!