Warioba: Discuss issues affecting majority poor

[BabuK]

Joseph Warioba, Chairman of the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC)


The Chairman of the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), Joseph Warioba, has expressed concern on the weight placed by most people, including politicians and the media, in discussing political issues in the first draft of the Constitution, leaving aside other issues that afflict the population in their daily lives.

Closing a three-day workshop organised by women legislators under the umbrella of Tanzania Women Parliamentarian Group (TWPG) yesterday in Bagamoyo, Coast Region, Judge Warioba said majority of the people, including politicians and media have been focusing and reporting on the country’s administrative structure, powers and other political matters, ignoring issues that touch the larger section of the public, especially rural population.

According to Warioba, when his commission was going round the country gathering public views, the larger section of people raised many issues, including ownership and valuation of land, social security for the elderly people, relations between communities and investors, national parks, access to quality education and social services.

On the question of land, Judge Warioba said in both phases of collection of public views the matter featured prominently, especially about who should be the custodian of land between an individual and the state (President).

Under the current Constitution the president of the United Republic is the custodian of land but many people want it placed in the hands of private individuals, Warioba said.
Warioba said those who gave their opinion expressed concern over the meager compensation awarded to individuals when the government takes over their land for other purposes.

He said people expressed doubt over the government, especially land officers’ ability to value land upon taking it from private individuals.
“Sometimes the land taken from private individuals might be containing minerals but the person ends up getting compensation for plants only,” he said.

Warioba said the matter could be stretched further to a scenario whereby the government revokes the ownership of land to establish a mining site, saying the government has often been acting in favour of investors, leaving locals complaining.

The CRC chairman said in areas endowed with national parks and game reserves people complained over the government trend of favouring wild animals.

Commenting on education and health services, he said majority of people called for improvement of services in the two sectors so that all children irrespective of their social strata can have access to quality services.

“The citizens want the government to ban all academies, a factor that will compel it to improve community schools where all children should be enrolled. They also want all people, irrespective of their social backgrounds and status to be treated within the country so that the government can improve all its health facilities.” he said.

Judge Warioba said critics of the draft should understand that what they compiled in the document did not emanate from CRC members. “The draft represents the views of the public, not ours,” he said amid applause from women MPs.

Agriculture, which is the backbone of the country’s economy, including employing the majority population, was also given special emphasis by the public, Warioba said.

Reporting on the recommendations put forward by women legislators, TWPG chairperson Anna Abdallah said MPs want the new constitution to explicitly address matters regarding the welfare of women including gender equality, the right of women to possess and inherit property and access to quality education.

She said the new Constitution should explicitly state the 50:50 ratio between men and women in leadership posts and other decision-making organs.

According to Abdallah, women MPs were not bothered by the number of governments that would be agreed at the end of the day, saying their focus was on women rights and gender equality.

On three-five year term limit for the MPs, she said women disagreed with the proposal, saying the verdict should be left in the hands of the electorate.



SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN