Junius
JF-Expert Member
- Mar 11, 2009
- 3,181
- 144
By Mpoki Bukuku, Pemba
Atop Civic United Front (CUF) leader has accused Union and Zanzibar government agents of eroding the party's support base in Pemba by refusing to issue residence IDs to CUF supporters.
Speaking at a rally in Wete on Saturday, CUF secretary general Seif Shariff Hamad said community leaders, commonly known as 'Shehas', had been refusing to issue residence cards to some known party members as a way of making them ineligible to vote.
"It is disappointing that even a regional commissioner pretends to have directed Shehas to register our people but they are still being turned away unregistered. This is amazing, but let's wait and see," he complained.
Mr Hamad claimed that the Union and Zanzibar governments enjoy very little support in Pemba hence their decision to employ the tactic of weakening his party.
"They have created a terrible situation here, people are being denied their right; it's like denying them their citizenship right," he said.
He also claimed that IDs had been issued to ineligible Zanzibaris like those with permanent residences in Tanzania Mainland so they could vote for the ruling party.
The opposition party supremo said his followers were on the edge and about to say 'enough is enough'.
"They have abused our rights for a long time and we have been quiet, time has come now for us to demand for our rights," he said.
Speaking at the same rally, a special seats MP claimed that there were several youths in Mainland who had been issued with identity cards waiting to be ferried to Pemba to vote.
"We should be vigilant all the time and expose unfamiliar faces. We should be on alert during the Uhuru Torch race as it is during this time that we receive many guests," she said.
Speaking at the same rally, the Leader of Official Opposition in the Parliament, Mr Hamad Rashid Mohammed (Wawi-CUF), called on President Jakaya Kikwete to resign for failing to deliver.
He said the way the government had handled the Richmond saga was a testimony that it had failed to deliver.
"Instead of addressing it, President Kikwete has created another crisis in Zanzibar, this is going to backfire,"he added.
SOURCE:THE CITIZEN
Atop Civic United Front (CUF) leader has accused Union and Zanzibar government agents of eroding the party's support base in Pemba by refusing to issue residence IDs to CUF supporters.
Speaking at a rally in Wete on Saturday, CUF secretary general Seif Shariff Hamad said community leaders, commonly known as 'Shehas', had been refusing to issue residence cards to some known party members as a way of making them ineligible to vote.
"It is disappointing that even a regional commissioner pretends to have directed Shehas to register our people but they are still being turned away unregistered. This is amazing, but let's wait and see," he complained.
Mr Hamad claimed that the Union and Zanzibar governments enjoy very little support in Pemba hence their decision to employ the tactic of weakening his party.
"They have created a terrible situation here, people are being denied their right; it's like denying them their citizenship right," he said.
He also claimed that IDs had been issued to ineligible Zanzibaris like those with permanent residences in Tanzania Mainland so they could vote for the ruling party.
The opposition party supremo said his followers were on the edge and about to say 'enough is enough'.
"They have abused our rights for a long time and we have been quiet, time has come now for us to demand for our rights," he said.
Speaking at the same rally, a special seats MP claimed that there were several youths in Mainland who had been issued with identity cards waiting to be ferried to Pemba to vote.
"We should be vigilant all the time and expose unfamiliar faces. We should be on alert during the Uhuru Torch race as it is during this time that we receive many guests," she said.
Speaking at the same rally, the Leader of Official Opposition in the Parliament, Mr Hamad Rashid Mohammed (Wawi-CUF), called on President Jakaya Kikwete to resign for failing to deliver.
He said the way the government had handled the Richmond saga was a testimony that it had failed to deliver.
"Instead of addressing it, President Kikwete has created another crisis in Zanzibar, this is going to backfire,"he added.
SOURCE:THE CITIZEN