S.N.Jilala
JF-Expert Member
- Jan 26, 2012
- 540
- 507
THE LEGACY OF MWALIMU JULIUS KAMBARAGE NYERERE: The Powerful Lesson for Africas New Generation.
ECKERNFORDE TANGA UNIVERSITY
P.O BOX 5079, TANGA.
Authors:
Jilala Simon N. (Assistant Lecturers in Development Studies and History)
and,
S.T.Shemhilu, (Assistant Lecturer History)
If you have comments; contact us Phone: 0754-684-684; email: 8319jilala@gmail.com)
1. Introduction
This article is the concise legacy of Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere, the first president of the United Republic of Tanzania. This man was a national and international figure. He exemplifies Africa leaders who tried to grapple with evils of neo-colonialism. This article encompasses with the following sub-headings including Who is Mwalimu Julius Nyerere was, selected Lessons Learnt from Mwalimu Nyerere, post-presidential activities and conclusion.
2. Who is Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere?
Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere was born on 13th April, 1922 in the town of Butiama in Tanganyika's Mara Region. He was one of 26 children of Nyerere Burito (18601942), Chief of the Zanaki. He attended Primary School in Musoma and went on to Tabora Government School in 1937. He received a scholarship to attend Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. Nyerere received his teaching Diploma in 1947.
He returned to Tanganyika and worked for 3 years at St. Mary's Secondary School in Tabora. In 1949 he got a government scholarship to attend the University of Edinburgh and was the first Tanganyikan to study at a British university. He obtained Master of Arts degree in Economics and History in 1952. In Edinburgh he encountered Fabian thinking and began to develop his particular vision of connecting socialism with African communal living.
In October, 1953, he joined the Tanganyika African Association (TAA) and appointed president of the association the aim was to speed up the struggle for independence. Later on, July 1954, he changed the social welfare TAA to be a political party Tanganyika African National Union (TANU), and in the same year he was appointed a member of Legislative Council (LEGICO). In March 22, 1955 he was accorded an opportunity to address the United Nations Trusteeship Council, emphasizing the needs for Tanganyika to be independent
In 1961, Nyerere was elected Tanganyika's first Prime Minister following independence. In 1962 he became the country's first President of the Tanganyika republic. In 1964, Tanganyika became politically united with Zanzibar and was renamed Tanzania. In 1965, a one-party election returned Nyerere to power. Two years in 1967, he issued the Arusha Declaration, which outlined his socialist vision of ujamaa that came to dominate his policies.
On February 5, 1977, Afro-Shiraz Party (ASP) and Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) joined to form Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) in order to strengthen and to safeguard the Union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. This union was a powerful weapon for young African states. It is no wonder that, when the sovereignty of Tanzania was threatened by the invasion of Idd Amin forces in 1978 he declared war with Uganda this saw the exit of blood thirst dictator.
Nyerere retired in 1985, while remaining the chairman of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi. He died of leukemia in London in 1999. In 2009, Nyerere was named "World Hero of Social Justice" by the president of the United Nations General Assembly. Nyerere was known by the Swahili name Mwalimu or 'Teacher', his profession prior to joining politics. He was also referred to as Baba wa Taifa (Father of the Nation).
3. Selected Lessons Learnt From Mwalimu Nyerere.
a) Peace;
In normal usage the word peace is used to mean absence of fighting or war between countries or groups of people. Nyerere always argued that, peace will come to Africa when our leaders realize that, peace is a product of JUSTICE; this means that without justice there cannot be genuine peace in any society. Mwalimu Nyerere delivered different public lectures; one of public lectures which was delivered by Nyerere was at London School of Economic and Political Science, on 6th June, 1997 at London. Mwalimu Nyereres speech was on Africa to-day and tomorrow.
An interesting example provided by Mwalimu Nyerere is that, Sudan has some of the most enlightened people on the African continent. They cannot fail to see that the solution to their problem of civil war was to negotiate. The authorities in Khartoum must let the people of Sudan be themselves. The attempt to arabise and islamise Sudanese did not make sense at any time in the past and neither today or tomorrow. Sudan would have to be democratic and secular. An undemocratic and theocratic Sudan could not last. Mwalimu Nyerere was not a prophet; it took one decade before Sudan divided into two nations of Southern and Northern Sudan due to the evils of Sudanese leaders. Mwalimu Nyerere believed in peace. He started to practise it at home (Tanzania), and then spread it to other African nations.
b) Unity;
It means that when people, groups, or countries join together, work together in order to achieve a particular goal. The essentiality of uniting together brings positive results in fulfilling the aim or beliefs of particular groups or countries. Throughout his life Mwalimu Nyerere emphasized peoples unity in order to tackle the internal and external challenges. He was among the initiators of the Organization of Africa Unity which was established in 1963. He worked with front-runners like Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana), Sekou Toure (Guinea) and King Haile Selassie (Ethiopia). He argued that Africa does not have much of a voice in the world due to disunity. He asserted that, without O.A.U, the African continent would not even have a whisper.
In his speech which Mwalimu Nyerere delivered at Abuja-Nigeria, March 10, 1997, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Award Ceremony, He emphasized the following on the issue of Africa unity. While our states continue to act in isolation in all relations with the outside world we intensify our separate and collective weakness and our vulnerability to being used for the interests-and the profit-of more powerful nations-both in Europe and elsewhere ..African unity will not solve our present problems. But African Unity will enable us to begin to solve them. It will also make us more effective in defending the interests of Africa as we necessarily work with other developing countries in international economic and political negotiations.
For example, the true friend of Mwalimu Nyerere, Kwame Nkrumah in his address at the OAUs founding states that:
We must unite now or perish. I am confident that by our concerted effort and determination, we shall lay here the foundations for a continental Union of African States. The struggle against colonialism does not end with the attainment of national independence. We have emerged into independence in a different age, with imperialism grown stronger, more ruthless and experienced, and more dangerous in its international associations.
We must recognize that our economic independence resides in our African union and requires the same concentration upon the political achievement. Is it not unity alone that can weld us into an effective force, capable of creating our own progress and making our valuable contribution to world peace. Without necessarily sacrificing our sovereignties, we can forge a political union based on defense, foreign affairs and diplomacy, and a common citizenship, an African currency, a monetary zone and a central bank. We must unite in order to achieve the full liberation of our continent.
In this regard Kwame Nkrumah anticipated a single government for the whole continent of Africa with unity as a common denominator.
c) Self-Reliance;
The Arusha Declaration was adopted on 5 February, 1967 by the National Executive Council (NEC) of TANU, in Arusha. The declaration was rooted in Socialism and Self-Reliance. The policy of Self-Reliance which was founded by Mwalimu Nyerere had two dimensions. The first one was internal which sought to mobilize domestic resources of land and people so as to minimize excessive dependence on foreign aid. It also aimed at maintaining Tanzanian independence and freedom. The second dimension was external which aimed to empower the state and its institutions thereby establishing international co-operation to facilitate economic prosperity and political autonomy
Therefore at the heart of the Arusha Declaration was the internationalization of the socio-economic and political development. It did not however ignore the external aspect of development. The government admitted that it was unable to provide the basic needs of people. But also it stipulated that, aid from foreign countries should not constitute the basis of Tanzanian development. The declaration underscored that, only aid that didnt endanger the countrys freedom to make key policy decisions and consistent to the policy of socialism and self reliance should be accepted. The declaration generally underlined the dangers of relying on foreign assistance, emphasized hard work, and agriculture development. The severing of diplomatic relations with West Germany in 1964 was a good example.
d) Human Equality;
Mwalimu Nyerere in the Arusha Declaration argued that, there are three aspects to the development of greater equality within a nation. One is differentials in personal incomes. The second is different degrees of access to public services, and the extent to which taxation-supported activities serve the interests of the people as a whole rather than those of a small minority. And the third is participation in decision-making
In some ways the second aspect of equality-that is the community aspect-is more important than the first in a poor country when market forces are prevented from operating freely by decisions of the democratically elected Government. For it provided that everyone is assured of minimum food, clothing, and shelter which is a great advance towards equality. If social services like education, health services, clean water, agricultural advice, transport are provided equally helps to reduce inequality.
The third aspect of equality, that is the power to participate in decision-making, is absolutely fundamental. Unless every person plays an effective part in his own government, rather than always being the recipient of decisions made by others, there can be no equality in human dignity and status. Nor is there likely to be very much progress in economic equality. Nyerere concluded by saying that, in all these aspects of equality we have made some advance.
e) Contribution to the freedom struggle in Africa;
Freedom means the right to do what you want, your own decisions, and expresses your own opinions. Mwalimu Nyerere was among leaders from Africa who opposed any kind exploitation in Africa. He started to oppose colonial regime by action, for example he opposed openly the apartheid policy which was practised in South Africa. Also Mwalimu Nyerere opposed all African governments which did not respect the human rights. Mwalimu Nyerere accepted Tanzania to be used as a centre of African freedom fighters after she attained independence in 1961. Good examples are liberation movements of Mozambique (FRELIMO), Angola (MPLA), Zimbabwe (ZANU PF) and Namibia (SWAPO). He always believed in the equality and dignity of all human beings, their colour not withstanding.
f) Problems of policy imposition from above;
Julius Nyerere in 1977 wrote a book titled; The Arusha Decralation Ten Years After. Nyerere emphasized that; if youre a leader, you need to listen to the people. The truth is that despite our official policies, and democratic institutions, some leaders still do not LISTEN to people. They find it much easier to TELL people what to do. Meetings are too much often monologues, without much, if any, time being devoted to discussion; and even then the speech is usually an exhortation to work hard rather than an explanation of how to do things better.
Mwalimu Nyerere emphasized that; our leaders at all levels must make more effort to reach decisions by discussion. They must encourage the people to criticize mistakes which have been made, and they must be willing to work with the people in rectifying past mistakes and avoiding new ones. A willingness to discuss problems, to recognize mistakes made by themselves as well as those made by others, and to bring problems into the open, is a sign of real and confident leadership. Nyerere believed that; when people criticize stupid decisions they are exerting their rights as citizens. When they criticize decisions which are not stupid they can be brought to understand why the decision was taken, and what it implies
As a leader one is supposed to stop intimidating the citizens. Leadership by intimidation is not leadership because it will work for a short time only. Leaders are acting for, and behalf of the people; explaining things until the people understand is an important part of their leadership. Every leader according to Mwalimu Nyerere should privately examine his/her own behavior to see where he or she has fallen down. For everyone makes mistakes; if we hold important positions these mistakes are likely to have serious effects.
But if we acknowledge mistakes, first to ourselves and then to those affected by it, it is usually possible for the error to be rectified or for its consequences to be minimized by co-operation between the leaders and the people. Nyerere said that; A person who can admit a fault, and strives to do better, is both more worthy of trust, and more likely to be trusted, than one who pretends to be infallible and tries to shift the blame on others.
g) Cultural imprint; Mwalimu Nyerere continued to influence the people of Tanzania in the years following his presidency.
His broader ideas of socialism live on in minds of many Tanzanians. He believed that, socialism was an attitude of mind that barred discrimination and entailed equality of all human beings. Therefore, ujamaa can be said to have created the social environment for the development of Tanzanian culture of love and unity. In addition, Mwalimu Nyerere supported the presence of foreign cultures in Tanzania saying, "a nation which refuses to learn from foreign cultures is nothing but a nation of ------ and lunatics... but to learn from other cultures does not mean we should abandon our own." Under his leadership, the Ministry of National Culture and Youth was created in order to allow Tanzanian popular culture.
h) Post-presidential activity;
After the Presidency, Nyerere remained the Chairman of CCM until 1990 when Ali Hassan Mwinyi took over. Nyerere remained vocal about the extent of corruption and corrupt officials during the Mwinyi administration. He also blocked Jakaya Kikwete's nomination for the presidency then, citing that he was too young to run a country. Nyerere was instrumental in getting Benjamin Mkapa elected (Mkapa had been Minister of Foreign Affairs for a time during Nyerere's administration). Kikwete later became president in 2005.
In one of his famous speeches during the CCM general assembly, Nyerere said in Swahili "Ninang'atuka", meaning that he was pulling out of politics for good. He kept to his word that Tanzania would be a democratic country. During his retirement, he continued to travel all over the world to attend and address international meetings of various heads of government. He acted as an advocate for poor countries and especially the South-South Dialogue. Nyerere travelled more widely after retiring than he did when he was president of Tanzania. One of his last high-profile actions was as the chief mediator in the Burundi conflict in 1996. He died at St.Thomas Hospital in London hospital of leukaemia on 14 October 1999.
4. Conclusion
Mwalimu Julius Nyerere through his career was a national and international statemen. Any Tanzania who travelled outside the continent was always regarded as a person from Nyereres country. In most cases Tanzania was equated with Mwalimu Nyerere by foreign nationals. His policies particularly those pertaining to the Arusha Declaration of e touched many capitalist countries and drew the sympathy of socialist countries. In this regard capitalist thought that, he belongs to the eastern bloc during the cold war era. However, to show that he didnt belong to either bloc, Tanzania was a member of the Non-alignment Movement.
References
Cliffe L, (1969), From Independence to Self-Reliance in Kimambo I.N and Temu A.J (1969) A History of Tanzania Nairobi, EAP
Macmillan Education, (2007), English Dictionary for Advanced Learners 2rd Edition, Macmillan Publisher, U.K
Nkrumah K, (1967) Challenge of the Congo Panaf Books Publisher, London
Nyerere J.K, (1977), The Arusha Declaration: Ten Years After Unpublished Book (See Pages 43-46)
Nyerere (1997), Africa to-day and Tomorrow Speech delivered at London School of Economics and Political Science, 06th June
Nyerere, J.K (1973) Freedom and Development, London Oxford University Press
Nkrumah K, (1967) Challenge of the Congo Panaf Books Publisher, London
Rugumamu, M (1997), Lethal Aid: The Illusion of Socialism and Self Reliance in Tanzania Irenton J. Asmara Publisher,
Simon, David (2006). Fifty key thinkers on development. Taylor & Francis. pp. 1939
ECKERNFORDE TANGA UNIVERSITY
P.O BOX 5079, TANGA.
Authors:
Jilala Simon N. (Assistant Lecturers in Development Studies and History)
and,
S.T.Shemhilu, (Assistant Lecturer History)
If you have comments; contact us Phone: 0754-684-684; email: 8319jilala@gmail.com)
1. Introduction
This article is the concise legacy of Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere, the first president of the United Republic of Tanzania. This man was a national and international figure. He exemplifies Africa leaders who tried to grapple with evils of neo-colonialism. This article encompasses with the following sub-headings including Who is Mwalimu Julius Nyerere was, selected Lessons Learnt from Mwalimu Nyerere, post-presidential activities and conclusion.
2. Who is Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere?
Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere was born on 13th April, 1922 in the town of Butiama in Tanganyika's Mara Region. He was one of 26 children of Nyerere Burito (18601942), Chief of the Zanaki. He attended Primary School in Musoma and went on to Tabora Government School in 1937. He received a scholarship to attend Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. Nyerere received his teaching Diploma in 1947.
He returned to Tanganyika and worked for 3 years at St. Mary's Secondary School in Tabora. In 1949 he got a government scholarship to attend the University of Edinburgh and was the first Tanganyikan to study at a British university. He obtained Master of Arts degree in Economics and History in 1952. In Edinburgh he encountered Fabian thinking and began to develop his particular vision of connecting socialism with African communal living.
In October, 1953, he joined the Tanganyika African Association (TAA) and appointed president of the association the aim was to speed up the struggle for independence. Later on, July 1954, he changed the social welfare TAA to be a political party Tanganyika African National Union (TANU), and in the same year he was appointed a member of Legislative Council (LEGICO). In March 22, 1955 he was accorded an opportunity to address the United Nations Trusteeship Council, emphasizing the needs for Tanganyika to be independent
In 1961, Nyerere was elected Tanganyika's first Prime Minister following independence. In 1962 he became the country's first President of the Tanganyika republic. In 1964, Tanganyika became politically united with Zanzibar and was renamed Tanzania. In 1965, a one-party election returned Nyerere to power. Two years in 1967, he issued the Arusha Declaration, which outlined his socialist vision of ujamaa that came to dominate his policies.
On February 5, 1977, Afro-Shiraz Party (ASP) and Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) joined to form Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) in order to strengthen and to safeguard the Union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. This union was a powerful weapon for young African states. It is no wonder that, when the sovereignty of Tanzania was threatened by the invasion of Idd Amin forces in 1978 he declared war with Uganda this saw the exit of blood thirst dictator.
Nyerere retired in 1985, while remaining the chairman of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi. He died of leukemia in London in 1999. In 2009, Nyerere was named "World Hero of Social Justice" by the president of the United Nations General Assembly. Nyerere was known by the Swahili name Mwalimu or 'Teacher', his profession prior to joining politics. He was also referred to as Baba wa Taifa (Father of the Nation).
3. Selected Lessons Learnt From Mwalimu Nyerere.
a) Peace;
In normal usage the word peace is used to mean absence of fighting or war between countries or groups of people. Nyerere always argued that, peace will come to Africa when our leaders realize that, peace is a product of JUSTICE; this means that without justice there cannot be genuine peace in any society. Mwalimu Nyerere delivered different public lectures; one of public lectures which was delivered by Nyerere was at London School of Economic and Political Science, on 6th June, 1997 at London. Mwalimu Nyereres speech was on Africa to-day and tomorrow.
An interesting example provided by Mwalimu Nyerere is that, Sudan has some of the most enlightened people on the African continent. They cannot fail to see that the solution to their problem of civil war was to negotiate. The authorities in Khartoum must let the people of Sudan be themselves. The attempt to arabise and islamise Sudanese did not make sense at any time in the past and neither today or tomorrow. Sudan would have to be democratic and secular. An undemocratic and theocratic Sudan could not last. Mwalimu Nyerere was not a prophet; it took one decade before Sudan divided into two nations of Southern and Northern Sudan due to the evils of Sudanese leaders. Mwalimu Nyerere believed in peace. He started to practise it at home (Tanzania), and then spread it to other African nations.
b) Unity;
It means that when people, groups, or countries join together, work together in order to achieve a particular goal. The essentiality of uniting together brings positive results in fulfilling the aim or beliefs of particular groups or countries. Throughout his life Mwalimu Nyerere emphasized peoples unity in order to tackle the internal and external challenges. He was among the initiators of the Organization of Africa Unity which was established in 1963. He worked with front-runners like Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana), Sekou Toure (Guinea) and King Haile Selassie (Ethiopia). He argued that Africa does not have much of a voice in the world due to disunity. He asserted that, without O.A.U, the African continent would not even have a whisper.
In his speech which Mwalimu Nyerere delivered at Abuja-Nigeria, March 10, 1997, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Award Ceremony, He emphasized the following on the issue of Africa unity. While our states continue to act in isolation in all relations with the outside world we intensify our separate and collective weakness and our vulnerability to being used for the interests-and the profit-of more powerful nations-both in Europe and elsewhere ..African unity will not solve our present problems. But African Unity will enable us to begin to solve them. It will also make us more effective in defending the interests of Africa as we necessarily work with other developing countries in international economic and political negotiations.
For example, the true friend of Mwalimu Nyerere, Kwame Nkrumah in his address at the OAUs founding states that:
We must unite now or perish. I am confident that by our concerted effort and determination, we shall lay here the foundations for a continental Union of African States. The struggle against colonialism does not end with the attainment of national independence. We have emerged into independence in a different age, with imperialism grown stronger, more ruthless and experienced, and more dangerous in its international associations.
We must recognize that our economic independence resides in our African union and requires the same concentration upon the political achievement. Is it not unity alone that can weld us into an effective force, capable of creating our own progress and making our valuable contribution to world peace. Without necessarily sacrificing our sovereignties, we can forge a political union based on defense, foreign affairs and diplomacy, and a common citizenship, an African currency, a monetary zone and a central bank. We must unite in order to achieve the full liberation of our continent.
In this regard Kwame Nkrumah anticipated a single government for the whole continent of Africa with unity as a common denominator.
c) Self-Reliance;
The Arusha Declaration was adopted on 5 February, 1967 by the National Executive Council (NEC) of TANU, in Arusha. The declaration was rooted in Socialism and Self-Reliance. The policy of Self-Reliance which was founded by Mwalimu Nyerere had two dimensions. The first one was internal which sought to mobilize domestic resources of land and people so as to minimize excessive dependence on foreign aid. It also aimed at maintaining Tanzanian independence and freedom. The second dimension was external which aimed to empower the state and its institutions thereby establishing international co-operation to facilitate economic prosperity and political autonomy
Therefore at the heart of the Arusha Declaration was the internationalization of the socio-economic and political development. It did not however ignore the external aspect of development. The government admitted that it was unable to provide the basic needs of people. But also it stipulated that, aid from foreign countries should not constitute the basis of Tanzanian development. The declaration underscored that, only aid that didnt endanger the countrys freedom to make key policy decisions and consistent to the policy of socialism and self reliance should be accepted. The declaration generally underlined the dangers of relying on foreign assistance, emphasized hard work, and agriculture development. The severing of diplomatic relations with West Germany in 1964 was a good example.
d) Human Equality;
Mwalimu Nyerere in the Arusha Declaration argued that, there are three aspects to the development of greater equality within a nation. One is differentials in personal incomes. The second is different degrees of access to public services, and the extent to which taxation-supported activities serve the interests of the people as a whole rather than those of a small minority. And the third is participation in decision-making
In some ways the second aspect of equality-that is the community aspect-is more important than the first in a poor country when market forces are prevented from operating freely by decisions of the democratically elected Government. For it provided that everyone is assured of minimum food, clothing, and shelter which is a great advance towards equality. If social services like education, health services, clean water, agricultural advice, transport are provided equally helps to reduce inequality.
The third aspect of equality, that is the power to participate in decision-making, is absolutely fundamental. Unless every person plays an effective part in his own government, rather than always being the recipient of decisions made by others, there can be no equality in human dignity and status. Nor is there likely to be very much progress in economic equality. Nyerere concluded by saying that, in all these aspects of equality we have made some advance.
e) Contribution to the freedom struggle in Africa;
Freedom means the right to do what you want, your own decisions, and expresses your own opinions. Mwalimu Nyerere was among leaders from Africa who opposed any kind exploitation in Africa. He started to oppose colonial regime by action, for example he opposed openly the apartheid policy which was practised in South Africa. Also Mwalimu Nyerere opposed all African governments which did not respect the human rights. Mwalimu Nyerere accepted Tanzania to be used as a centre of African freedom fighters after she attained independence in 1961. Good examples are liberation movements of Mozambique (FRELIMO), Angola (MPLA), Zimbabwe (ZANU PF) and Namibia (SWAPO). He always believed in the equality and dignity of all human beings, their colour not withstanding.
f) Problems of policy imposition from above;
Julius Nyerere in 1977 wrote a book titled; The Arusha Decralation Ten Years After. Nyerere emphasized that; if youre a leader, you need to listen to the people. The truth is that despite our official policies, and democratic institutions, some leaders still do not LISTEN to people. They find it much easier to TELL people what to do. Meetings are too much often monologues, without much, if any, time being devoted to discussion; and even then the speech is usually an exhortation to work hard rather than an explanation of how to do things better.
Mwalimu Nyerere emphasized that; our leaders at all levels must make more effort to reach decisions by discussion. They must encourage the people to criticize mistakes which have been made, and they must be willing to work with the people in rectifying past mistakes and avoiding new ones. A willingness to discuss problems, to recognize mistakes made by themselves as well as those made by others, and to bring problems into the open, is a sign of real and confident leadership. Nyerere believed that; when people criticize stupid decisions they are exerting their rights as citizens. When they criticize decisions which are not stupid they can be brought to understand why the decision was taken, and what it implies
As a leader one is supposed to stop intimidating the citizens. Leadership by intimidation is not leadership because it will work for a short time only. Leaders are acting for, and behalf of the people; explaining things until the people understand is an important part of their leadership. Every leader according to Mwalimu Nyerere should privately examine his/her own behavior to see where he or she has fallen down. For everyone makes mistakes; if we hold important positions these mistakes are likely to have serious effects.
But if we acknowledge mistakes, first to ourselves and then to those affected by it, it is usually possible for the error to be rectified or for its consequences to be minimized by co-operation between the leaders and the people. Nyerere said that; A person who can admit a fault, and strives to do better, is both more worthy of trust, and more likely to be trusted, than one who pretends to be infallible and tries to shift the blame on others.
g) Cultural imprint; Mwalimu Nyerere continued to influence the people of Tanzania in the years following his presidency.
His broader ideas of socialism live on in minds of many Tanzanians. He believed that, socialism was an attitude of mind that barred discrimination and entailed equality of all human beings. Therefore, ujamaa can be said to have created the social environment for the development of Tanzanian culture of love and unity. In addition, Mwalimu Nyerere supported the presence of foreign cultures in Tanzania saying, "a nation which refuses to learn from foreign cultures is nothing but a nation of ------ and lunatics... but to learn from other cultures does not mean we should abandon our own." Under his leadership, the Ministry of National Culture and Youth was created in order to allow Tanzanian popular culture.
h) Post-presidential activity;
After the Presidency, Nyerere remained the Chairman of CCM until 1990 when Ali Hassan Mwinyi took over. Nyerere remained vocal about the extent of corruption and corrupt officials during the Mwinyi administration. He also blocked Jakaya Kikwete's nomination for the presidency then, citing that he was too young to run a country. Nyerere was instrumental in getting Benjamin Mkapa elected (Mkapa had been Minister of Foreign Affairs for a time during Nyerere's administration). Kikwete later became president in 2005.
In one of his famous speeches during the CCM general assembly, Nyerere said in Swahili "Ninang'atuka", meaning that he was pulling out of politics for good. He kept to his word that Tanzania would be a democratic country. During his retirement, he continued to travel all over the world to attend and address international meetings of various heads of government. He acted as an advocate for poor countries and especially the South-South Dialogue. Nyerere travelled more widely after retiring than he did when he was president of Tanzania. One of his last high-profile actions was as the chief mediator in the Burundi conflict in 1996. He died at St.Thomas Hospital in London hospital of leukaemia on 14 October 1999.
4. Conclusion
Mwalimu Julius Nyerere through his career was a national and international statemen. Any Tanzania who travelled outside the continent was always regarded as a person from Nyereres country. In most cases Tanzania was equated with Mwalimu Nyerere by foreign nationals. His policies particularly those pertaining to the Arusha Declaration of e touched many capitalist countries and drew the sympathy of socialist countries. In this regard capitalist thought that, he belongs to the eastern bloc during the cold war era. However, to show that he didnt belong to either bloc, Tanzania was a member of the Non-alignment Movement.
References
Cliffe L, (1969), From Independence to Self-Reliance in Kimambo I.N and Temu A.J (1969) A History of Tanzania Nairobi, EAP
Macmillan Education, (2007), English Dictionary for Advanced Learners 2rd Edition, Macmillan Publisher, U.K
Nkrumah K, (1967) Challenge of the Congo Panaf Books Publisher, London
Nyerere J.K, (1977), The Arusha Declaration: Ten Years After Unpublished Book (See Pages 43-46)
Nyerere (1997), Africa to-day and Tomorrow Speech delivered at London School of Economics and Political Science, 06th June
Nyerere, J.K (1973) Freedom and Development, London Oxford University Press
Nkrumah K, (1967) Challenge of the Congo Panaf Books Publisher, London
Rugumamu, M (1997), Lethal Aid: The Illusion of Socialism and Self Reliance in Tanzania Irenton J. Asmara Publisher,
Simon, David (2006). Fifty key thinkers on development. Taylor & Francis. pp. 1939
