Zanzibar state house denounces proposal to extend president’s term

Unguja. The Zanzibar State House has denounced a statement by a senior ruling party official that sought to extend President Hussein Mwinyi’s term to seven years.

The condemnation by the Zanzibar State House comes following a statement by the deputy secretary general of the ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) in Zanzibar, Dr Mohamed Said Dimwa, saying that the Secretariat Members of the Special Committee of the CCM National Executive Committee (NEC) have endorsed a proposal to extend Dr Mwinyi’s term to seven years from the current five-year term.

Dimwa made the remarks while closing the UVCCM district executive council meeting held at the district office in Kiembesamaki Dimani, Zanzibar at the weekend.

According to Dr Dimwa, the decision to extend Dr Mwinyi’s tenure stems from satisfaction with his effective implementation of the CCM Manifesto for 2020–2025, achieving over 100 percent of set targets within three years and several months since taking office.

But in an interesting turn to the issue, the Zanzibar State House issued a statement on Monday, June 24, 2024, castigating Dr Dimwa’s utterance.

Through the statement, which was signed by the Director of Communications at the Zanzibar State House and Government Spokesperson, Mr Charles Hilary, Dr Dimwa’s did not portray Dr Mwinyi’s standpoint.

“Recently, there have been opinions suggesting that the President of Zanzibar and Chairman of the Revolutionary Council, Dr Hussein Ali Mwinyi, should have his term extended to seven years instead of the five years stipulated in the Zanzibar Constitution.

“These opinions have gone further to suggest that next year’s general election to elect the President of Zanzibar should not take place. This is neither beneficial nor advantageous to our country and the CCM, which adheres to democratic principles,” the statement reads.

Additionally, the statement noted that President Mwinyi is a firm believer in adhering to the Constitution and the laws of the country.

“We wish to emphasize that these views are neither those of the President nor of the CCM in Zanzibar,” it reads.

“In this context, President Mwinyi will continue to respect the established procedure of electing a President every five years. Furthermore, he has urged all those with differing opinions to close this debate,” the statement explained.