The Secretary General of Tanzania’s ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), Emmanuel Nchimbi, has urged the public to maintain trust in the police, despite the growing outrage over the increasing cases of abductions, disappearances, and killings.
Nchimbi made these remarks on September 13, 2024, during a press conference at the party’s offices in Lumumba, Dar es Salaam, where he outlined the party’s stance following the recent abduction cases and the brutal murder of opposition leader Ali Kibao. Nchimbi emphasized the party is livid with the recent development in the country and call for unity as investigation continues.
“Anyone who endangers the safety of citizens, anyone involved in the kidnapping of citizens, anyone involved in the killing of citizens, or any group that causes citizens to live in fear is clearly doing so to tarnish the image of CCM in the eyes of the public,” Nchimbi explained.
While Nchimbi said the party position is for the kidnappers and killers to be found at any cost, he went on to emphasize the need of the public to maintain confidence to the Police.
“There is a significant effort being made to create tension between the police force and citizens, and I want to emphasize that this is one of the worst things anyone can do,” Nchimbi said.
While public complaints regarding abductions have escalated recently, several government surveys indicate that the police have long struggled with public confidence. For instance, the 2022 Integrity Survey on Public Service highlighted police crime reporting and traffic services as the country’s most corrupt areas of public service. Similarly, the National Governance and Corruption Survey (2020), which involved 3,163 respondents, found that the police were perceived as the most corrupt institution in Tanzania (45.6% of respondents), followed by the health sector (17.9%).
In contrast, the same survey showed that the majority of Tanzanians (60.9%) perceive the Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF) as having officials with high levels of integrity. Meanwhile, a significant portion of the public perceives the police as dishonest (39.5%), followed by primary courts (19.9%).
However, Nchimbi believes that most ordinary citizens have great faith in the police and that it is unfair to tarnish the reputation of the entire force due to the actions of a few bad officers.
READ: Police Brutality in Tanzania: A Rogue Police Force Or A Few Bad Apples?
“For ordinary citizens, the police are doing their jobs well. It is unacceptable that, because of a few problematic police officers, people want citizens to be angry at the entire police force. This is completely unacceptable and is the most reckless thing you can do,” Nchimbi added.
Abductions
The opposition party, CHADEMA, has maintained that the police are involved in the abduction of its leaders, including Deusdedith Soka and Jacob Godwin Mlay, who were abducted on August 18, 2024. Soka and Mlay were taken along with Frank Mbise, a commercial motorcycle driver who worked for Soka.
According to CHADEMA, the target of the abduction was Soka, who was lured by the police under the pretext of recovering his stolen motorcycle. In fear for his safety, Soka invited Mlay and his driver to accompany him. The three men have not been seen since a van picked them up.
It is not just CHADEMA accusing the police of involvement in abductions. Edgar Edson Mwakabela, who survived an assassination attempt following his abduction on June 23, 2024, claimed that he was taken to a police station during his ordeal. He has shared the identity of the police officer he said he had identified saw during his abduction on his social media platform X, asserting that the officer was the leader of his kidnappers and had interrogated him.
Several other Tanzanians whose loved ones have been abducted have also pointed fingers at the police. For example, the late William Sije Rubanda, in his final media interview with The Chanzo three weeks before his death, alleged that the police had abducted his son, James William Sije. Sije claimed that several people had identified the individuals who took his son on the night of August 17, 2021.
“Since this child passed away, I have never found peace, because he followed his mother, who also died,” Sije said, referring to his son as deceased during the interview with The Chanzo on July 25, 2024. He later died on August 17, 2024, the anniversary of his son’s disappearance.
“Since his disappearance, I have never had peace in my life. Even now, when I think of this child, I just cry. It has been a long time, but I still can’t forget. This is the greatest pain I face.”
A similar story can be seen in the case of Johari Rajab Songoro, whose husband, Isaya Lilenga, disappeared for a month on April 29, 2022, only to be released later by the police. Lilenga disappeared again on May 11, 2024, leaving a devastated family.
Police have maintained that it is not involved in abductions and said it is disrespectful to the institution that serves to protect the people in the country.
Nchimbi admits that the recent abductions are one of the nation’s toughest challenges, but cautions that finger-pointing will not solve the problem.
He said: “If there is one thing that will not help our nation, it is people trying to cause discord between the police and the public. At the end of the day, the pain will be felt by the public, not by the police, the IGP (Inspector General of Police), or any other official. You are hurting the nation without any valid reason.”
“I believe we have a great responsibility to stop pointing fingers at each other and ensure that a thorough and genuine investigation is conducted,” he added.
Recent Challenges
Nchimbi took a moment to share some of the recent developments including the September 11, 2024, clash between the Police and citizens in Geita who had wrongly suspected two men with a child were child abductors. Although the police intervened to protect the men—later confirmed as one of the child’s parents—angry citizens attacked the police station, burning property. Two people were shot dead after police used live rounds to disperse the crowd.
This incident follows another in Lamadi Simiyu which occurred on August, where protesters, demanding police action over a series of abductions and killings in the area, stormed a police station and attempted to set it on fire. This led to the arrest of 108 people, and one person was shot dead during the confrontation.
The opposition party CHADEMA has called for external investigators, specifically Scotland Yard, to be invited, citing their lack of trust in the Tanzanian police to investigate incidents in which they are implicated.
