A petition to His Excellency Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete
- Category: Peering Eye
- Date 01-01-2006
- 402 views
Peering Eye hereby lodges a petition, this first day of January 2006, to Your Excellency the President-elect of the United Republic of Tanzania, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, as we congratulate you heartily upon your resounding victory in the most recent elections.
Let me strike the metal when it is still hot, and I do hereby set an example for all you folks who have a mission to accomplish during the reign of the very honourable President, H.E. J.M. Kikwete, hereunder referred to as JMK.
Before I address Your Excellency JMK, allow me to harangue the opposition, warning them against indolence and procrastination. These guys, returning from arduous political campaigns, are going to pitch camp in Dar es Salaam from where they will regularly issue statements for journalists to pick on and relay to the population. In the meantime, they will be waiting for the expiry of JMK’s term of office before they return to the wananchi to demand for votes, five years from now.
On my part, I have strong desire to be President of any piece of land, and thus I envy you, JMK. If it were in my power, I would take any constituency, declare that it deserves a President, and I would delightedly go there to govern it. Nevertheless, my desire to be President is yet to translate into a practical aspiration if I were to offer myself for such an office.
I mean, for those who have been itching for Presidency, and have already invested a lot in that venture by way of campaigns, it helps not to sit down. Keep the desire alive and visible as you traverse the countryside throughout the next five years. Maintain the touch with the population and you will save us the ignominy of defeat as you have suffered at the hands of JMK; moreover he would have been the softest target CCM has ever offered: a Foreign Minister who spent more time with foreigners than citizens.
The point is: we need a serious opposition, and we demand vigorous individuals to provide leadership. The present opposition parties need to understand the party they are struggling to dislodge from power. It is so firmly entrenched that that it requires real strategic planning, remembering that in order to wring success from a rock, you must be hard yourself.
As for you, JMK, I request you to promote the opposition! As soon as you were declared the winner, I was preparing to pour into a nearby street to celebrate the biggest victory ever. However, when the votes obtained by your closest rival were mentioned, I called off my demonstration, noting that your strength is your real weakness. Prof. Lipumba had scored about ten times less than your notch! I had initially mentioned that your rivals had been humiliated in defeat, but I was reminded that it is you, sir, who was humiliated by accepting to compete against such weak contenders.
Logically, your strength would be measured proportionately to the weight of the person you fight against. It is quite honourable when you defeat a bloke who would otherwise defeat you at the slightest misstep. You have heard political rivals imprisoned or killed when they threaten the rulers, even democratically. A contest, which puts you at the risk of losing the duel, would give the desired pleasure and pride when you win. Thus, to enjoy a fight, it is not a bad idea to feed your adversary and deliver a credible defeat against a strong foe other than derive humiliating victory over a helpless opponent. Let this not happen next time!
Yes, the CCM retained its overwhelming majority in parliament, with 206 out of 232 seats. Yet with such a miserable opposition, how will you tackle critical issues? It will be a pure CCM monologue, which is undesirable in democracy – even in normal life. It is embarrassing for one, however intelligent, to talk to oneself. To show that you are speaking sense, you must have an audience to engage, scrutinise and appreciate your speech.
I submit, Your Excellency!
By Venansio Ahabwe
Source: Peering Eye, Sunday Citizen