BabuK
JF-Expert Member
- Jul 30, 2008
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The universally famous expression, ‘Charity begins at home', marked the arrival to Arusha yesterday, of Chadema's presidential candidate, Dr Willibrod Slaa.
Business came to a standstill for four hours in what is dubbed the Geneva of Africa, as thousands of its residents rushed to welcome Dr Slaa, a priest-turned-politician whose decision to vie for the presidency has changed the political wind in the country ahead of the October 31 poll.
One of the highlights of Dr Slaa's arrival was a convoy of hundreds of motorists who stylishly rode the two-wheel machines from a hotel in which he had been booked, to Mbauda grounds, which hosted a mammoth campaign rally.
At one stage, a huge, surging crowd eager to get close to the Chadema flag bearer for the State House race overwhelmed the security officers attached to Dr Slaa, though there was no incidence of insecurity during the event.
Finally came the moment when Dr Slaa stood to address the crowd, and his message was mainly directed to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Samuel Sitta, with whom he has lately been at loggerheads.
But, first, a message to the Arusha residents: "We have not ferried you from your homes to this place with lorries or buses…Neither did we give you free T-shirts nor khanga plus money to solicit you to come here."
"Your massive attendance is a demonstration that you are fully committed for changes," an overwhelmed Dr Slaa told the campaign rally.
Dr Slaa, who has attracted huge support from the public since the presidential campaigns kicked off, has so far toured Morogoro, Dodoma, Manyara, Singida, Shinyanga, Mwanza and Mara regions.
Then came the moment of responding to various accusations issued by Speaker Sitta, and Dr Slaa strongly attacked his former boss.
During a rally also attended by the party's founder, former Bank of Tanzania governor and Finance Minister Edwin Mtei, Dr Slaa described Sitta as one of the corrupt leaders, but who has been using the war against corruption as a hideout against his disgraced acts.
Dr Slaa hit hard on Speaker Samuel Sitta, saying he is one of the officials who should never escape blame for misuse of public money while majority of Tanzanians are languishing in abject poverty.
Addressing the jubilant multitude while holding a piece of paper in his hand Dr Slaa said Speaker Sitta has built an office at his Urambo East Constituency worth Sh500 million while MPs' offices in the constituencies are estimated to cost between Sh40 and 65 million only.
Worse still, Dr Slaa said, after the completion of the office, Speaker Sitta bought furniture worth Sh 155million before two aircrafts were hired to ferry people from Dar es Salaam to Tabora to attend the inaugural ceremony.
According to Dr Slaa, the funds spent in constructing speaker's office were channeled through a wrong Vote No. 42- a vote meant for Regional Administrative Secretaries (RAS).
According to the opposition presidential candidate, Sh 500 million could build ten dispensaries or construct 71 classrooms.
"Speaker Sitta does all this while knowing that there are expecting mothers delivering their babies on the floor in hospitals for lack of beds in his constituency," he said.
Dr Slaa told the crowd that such information was availed to him by government officials who were not happy with the way some top officials in the country were haphazardly spending taxpayers' money. "I can assure you that there are people with high level of integrity in the government who are not happy with the way things are moving in this country,' he added.
Dr Slaa revealed this to the public while stressing that the Tanzania government is capable of providing free education and health care to Tanzanians.
He said it is a shame for people from the nation (Tanzania) endowed with abundant natural resources such a minerals and wildlife to lead a miserable life while countries with minimal or no resources such as Kenya are now offering education for free. He said Tanzanians, for a long time, have been victims of poor government polices, corruption and embezzlement of public funds, saying it's high time voters embraced change by voting for Chadema.
He said Chadema, if given the mandate to form the government, would raise money to finance education and heath care services by tremendously cutting down public spending through reducing the size of the cabinet to not more than 20 seats, slashing MPs' emoluments, abolishing some government posts such as the post of the district commissioner and reducing procurement of government vehicles.
He said other money would be generated after overhauling mining contracts.
On human settlements, Dr Slaa has maintained that Chadema government would waive all taxes on construction materials to enable people construct decent houses. ‘What I am saying to you is possible because Rwanda has been able to implement it," he said.
One resident of Arusha got hysterically happy. Joseph Palangyo excitedly said: "This is our president. We have waited for this opportunity for so long. The ruling party has cheated us for about fifty years now. The state of our lives deteriorates day by day. Dr Slaa, I am sure, will reverse the trend." Addressing the rally, the party's founder, described Dr Slaa as a man of the people who was capable of defending the national interests for the benefits of all.
According to Mtei, following the ruling party's failure to bring better living for all Tanzanians after being in power for about five decades, Dr Slaa was the potential and credible saviour to take Tanzania to the next level of economic, social and political prosperity.
Mtei, who served during the late Julius Nyerere's regime, questioned the new culture in which those accused of corruption were being protected by the ruling party at any cost.
This, according to Mtei, was the beginning of the downfall of Africa's oldest ruling party, CCM.
SOURCE: GUARDIAN
Business came to a standstill for four hours in what is dubbed the Geneva of Africa, as thousands of its residents rushed to welcome Dr Slaa, a priest-turned-politician whose decision to vie for the presidency has changed the political wind in the country ahead of the October 31 poll.
One of the highlights of Dr Slaa's arrival was a convoy of hundreds of motorists who stylishly rode the two-wheel machines from a hotel in which he had been booked, to Mbauda grounds, which hosted a mammoth campaign rally.
At one stage, a huge, surging crowd eager to get close to the Chadema flag bearer for the State House race overwhelmed the security officers attached to Dr Slaa, though there was no incidence of insecurity during the event.
Finally came the moment when Dr Slaa stood to address the crowd, and his message was mainly directed to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Samuel Sitta, with whom he has lately been at loggerheads.
But, first, a message to the Arusha residents: "We have not ferried you from your homes to this place with lorries or buses…Neither did we give you free T-shirts nor khanga plus money to solicit you to come here."
"Your massive attendance is a demonstration that you are fully committed for changes," an overwhelmed Dr Slaa told the campaign rally.
Dr Slaa, who has attracted huge support from the public since the presidential campaigns kicked off, has so far toured Morogoro, Dodoma, Manyara, Singida, Shinyanga, Mwanza and Mara regions.
Then came the moment of responding to various accusations issued by Speaker Sitta, and Dr Slaa strongly attacked his former boss.
During a rally also attended by the party's founder, former Bank of Tanzania governor and Finance Minister Edwin Mtei, Dr Slaa described Sitta as one of the corrupt leaders, but who has been using the war against corruption as a hideout against his disgraced acts.
Dr Slaa hit hard on Speaker Samuel Sitta, saying he is one of the officials who should never escape blame for misuse of public money while majority of Tanzanians are languishing in abject poverty.
Addressing the jubilant multitude while holding a piece of paper in his hand Dr Slaa said Speaker Sitta has built an office at his Urambo East Constituency worth Sh500 million while MPs' offices in the constituencies are estimated to cost between Sh40 and 65 million only.
Worse still, Dr Slaa said, after the completion of the office, Speaker Sitta bought furniture worth Sh 155million before two aircrafts were hired to ferry people from Dar es Salaam to Tabora to attend the inaugural ceremony.
According to Dr Slaa, the funds spent in constructing speaker's office were channeled through a wrong Vote No. 42- a vote meant for Regional Administrative Secretaries (RAS).
According to the opposition presidential candidate, Sh 500 million could build ten dispensaries or construct 71 classrooms.
"Speaker Sitta does all this while knowing that there are expecting mothers delivering their babies on the floor in hospitals for lack of beds in his constituency," he said.
Dr Slaa told the crowd that such information was availed to him by government officials who were not happy with the way some top officials in the country were haphazardly spending taxpayers' money. "I can assure you that there are people with high level of integrity in the government who are not happy with the way things are moving in this country,' he added.
Dr Slaa revealed this to the public while stressing that the Tanzania government is capable of providing free education and health care to Tanzanians.
He said it is a shame for people from the nation (Tanzania) endowed with abundant natural resources such a minerals and wildlife to lead a miserable life while countries with minimal or no resources such as Kenya are now offering education for free. He said Tanzanians, for a long time, have been victims of poor government polices, corruption and embezzlement of public funds, saying it's high time voters embraced change by voting for Chadema.
He said Chadema, if given the mandate to form the government, would raise money to finance education and heath care services by tremendously cutting down public spending through reducing the size of the cabinet to not more than 20 seats, slashing MPs' emoluments, abolishing some government posts such as the post of the district commissioner and reducing procurement of government vehicles.
He said other money would be generated after overhauling mining contracts.
On human settlements, Dr Slaa has maintained that Chadema government would waive all taxes on construction materials to enable people construct decent houses. ‘What I am saying to you is possible because Rwanda has been able to implement it," he said.
One resident of Arusha got hysterically happy. Joseph Palangyo excitedly said: "This is our president. We have waited for this opportunity for so long. The ruling party has cheated us for about fifty years now. The state of our lives deteriorates day by day. Dr Slaa, I am sure, will reverse the trend." Addressing the rally, the party's founder, described Dr Slaa as a man of the people who was capable of defending the national interests for the benefits of all.
According to Mtei, following the ruling party's failure to bring better living for all Tanzanians after being in power for about five decades, Dr Slaa was the potential and credible saviour to take Tanzania to the next level of economic, social and political prosperity.
Mtei, who served during the late Julius Nyerere's regime, questioned the new culture in which those accused of corruption were being protected by the ruling party at any cost.
This, according to Mtei, was the beginning of the downfall of Africa's oldest ruling party, CCM.
SOURCE: GUARDIAN
