Dodoma. The ruling party, Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM), is set to hold a Special General Meeting from January 18 to 19, 2025, with three key agendas, including filling the position left vacant by the former Vice Chairman of CCM Tanzania Mainland, Abdulrahman Kinana, who resigned in July 2024.
This was stated by the Secretary of the National Executive Committee (NEC) for Ideology, Propaganda, and Training of CCM, Amos Makalla, during a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Dodoma.
He mentioned that the process to replace Kinana is expected to be finalized after the Central Committee (CC) submits a name for consideration by the National Executive Committee, which will then present the name to the delegates of the general meeting for a vote.
“There has been some speculation, with headlines suggesting there will be a fierce contest within CCM,” Makalla said. “They claim some people will be named as potential replacements for Kinana, and others are even writing who will take his place. Everyone is writing what they want.”
“The vice chairman’s position is not contested. When you say there’s competition, where does it come from when the position isn’t being contested, nor are forms being filled?” he added.
Other agenda items for the special meeting include receiving reports on the party’s activities from 2022 to 2025, as well as an update on the implementation of CCM’s 2020 election manifesto.
“We have not been silent. The party is governed by its constitution and follows its guidelines. We cannot be led by public emotions. Currently, the Central Committee believes it is the right time to fill this position,” he said.
Kinana resigned from his position on July 29, 2024. He was elected to the role on April 1, 2022, after delegates at a special CCM general meeting voted him in with 1,875 yes votes.
Among the key initiatives Kinana led during his tenure as Vice Chairman was the political reconciliation process between CCM and the main opposition party CHADEMA. Earlier last year, it was announced that the process had stalled, although some leaders from both sides acknowledged that some minor successes had been achieved.
The reconciliation effort was part of President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s strategy to address the political crisis she inherited from her predecessor, John Pombe Magufuli, on March 17, 2021.
The political crisis in Tanzania reached its peak during the 2020 elections, which Kinana and opposition politicians admitted were marred by numerous human rights violations, leading many opposition leaders of CHADEMA to flee into exile.
Jackline Kuwanda is a Dodoma-based The Chanzo correspondent. She’s available at Jackline@thechanzo.com.
