TOP CCM leaders acknowledge cheers from
members of the party’s Central Committee prior to their meeting in
Dodoma yesterday. Others are - from left; Union President John Magufuli,
Zanzibar President and Vice-Chairman (Isles), Dr Ali Mohamed Shein,
outgoing National Chairman, Mr Jakaya Kikwete, Secretary General
Abdulrahman Kinana and Vice-Chairman (Mainland), Mr Philip Mangula.
(Photo by State House)
Mr Kikwete, who is also former Union
President, made the remarks while opening the party’s Central Commitee
(CCM-CC) meeting that convened to deliberate on several issues ahead of
the party’s national congress scheduled for tomorrow.
There have been incessant statements,
particularly from members of the opposition, that CCM has lost direction
and that it was due to collapse. But in his speech, Mr Kikwete assured
Tanzanians that the party was still strong and that those who were
mocking it are wasting their time.
“There are people who have even gone too
far by saying that they were preparing mock funerals in the event of
the party’s death. However, we are on the contrary becoming stronger
than ever before,’’ he insisted.
Mr Kikwete, who is expected to hand over
the party’s chairmanship to President John Magufuli tomorrow, noted
that there were people “who had thought that they would emerge and
become strong in the party only to hit the brick wall’’.
The outgoing party chairman briefed the
meeting on the election procedures for the new chairman, saying the main
issue, which would be the only agenda, was to propose the name of
President Magufuli for the party’s chairmanship.
“After the name has been endorsed, it
will be fowarded to the National Executive Commitee (NEC), which has the
mandate to vote and comfirm our new chairman,’’ Mr Kikwete told the
delegates. The party’s NEC is expected to meet here tomorrow to endorse
the name of the new chairman. According to Mr Kikwete, the party’s top
leaders had accorded him the necessary cooperation in all the years that
he had led CCM.
“I managed to succeed in my leadership
because all of you gave me strong support and cooperation. I have the
honour to thank you for what you did,’’ he said in his final meeting as
top party boss. Meanwhile, there is a hotel accommodation crisis in
Dodoma as delegates are getting ready to elect the new chairman
tomorrow.
A survey by the ‘Daily News’ has
established that all the hotels and lodges in Dodoma were booked by the
end of business on Wednesday.
At the Dodoma’s main bus stand,
travellers were complaining that they had nowhere to stay as every hotel
and lodge had been booked. Security has been beefed up to ensure that
no group could disrupt the meeting. Police were yesterday making patrols
at every corner of this municipality
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