SAMIA’S FORTHRIGHT SPEECH A COMMENDABLE BEGINNING

It can no longer be business as usual. That is the message President Samia Suluhu Hassan put across when she spoke at Tuesday’s swearing-in ceremony at State House, Dar es Salaam.

 

President Hassan’s wide-ranging speech that lasted about an hour and a half touched on a number of

issues, which had one thing in common – they were all about good governance, or rather lack of it.

Among other issues, the Head of State voiced her concern about the way investors were being frustrated by an entrenched web of bureaucracy, corruption, intimidation and outright victimisation, and confirmed that a number of them had indeed packed up and left the country as a result.

An unpalatable fact which had for a number of years been kept under wraps before President Hassan delivered her hard-hitting speech is that Tanzania’s image as the destination of choice for investors in this part of African is in tatters.

That flies in the face of the endeavour to turn Tanzania into a semi-industrialised economy in the next few years, and needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency as directed by the Head of State.

Tanzania as a country has ambitious development goals. That, in itself, is not necessarily a bad thing, but it is well neigh impossible to industrialise when potential investors face all manner of hurdles almost right after they set foot in Tanzania. This country needs all the investment it can muster, as this, among other benefits, translates into more revenues for the government and jobs for Tanzanians.

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The President also touched on the thorny subject of press freedom in Tanzania when she directed the relevant authorities to lift bans imposed on media outlets in recent years, telling them to desist from taking “arbitrary” action.

This directive is highly commendable, but it should be noted that Tanzania still has some of most draconian media laws in Africa and indeed the world.

Selective application of the law

To make matters worse, these laws have been selectively applied quite unabashedly in the recent past. In other words, there are different rules for different people as far as regulation of the media industry is concerned.

It is heartening to note that the President is aware of this serious flaw, and her directive should set the stage for the review and amendment of this incredibly oppressive legislation, which essentially criminalises good journalism. Tanzanians’ constitutional right to information needs to be safeguarded at all times.

President Hassan was also spot-on on Tanzania’s relations with the rest of the world, and we fully concur with her that it is not right for the country to drift towards isolation. As she aptly put it, quoting a famous African proverb, “If you want to go fast go alone, but if you want to go far go together.”

We also need to guard against becoming increasingly combative and paranoid. It is time Tanzania reclaimed its rightful position in the global community.

The President’s lengthy and gripping speech shows that a lot needs to be done to set the country on the right course. It has given rise to hope that a better Tanzania for all is still possible.