By Our Special Correspondent
The Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania of 1977 and the Constitution of Chama Cha Mapinduzi of 1977 as amended have finally settled the heated debate sparked by Comrade Paul Chacha, Secretary of the National Executive Council for Organization.
While opposition activists have been shouting on social media that state organs belong to the people, constitutional analysts have gone back to the books and found that Comrade Chacha is legally correct. The secret lies in the connection between Article 148 of the National Constitution and Article 119 of the CCM Constitution.
Article 148 (1) of the Constitution of the United Republic states clearly: "The President shall be the Commander-in-Chief of all the Armed Forces of the United Republic."
The question that many do not ask is, who is this President and where does he come from? He does not fall from the sky. The law that creates the President is found in the political party constitutions.
CCM Constitution, Article 119, states: "The National Chairman of the Party is the supreme leader of the Party and is the Party's candidate for the Presidency of the United Republic."
This means there is a direct, unbreakable legal chain. CCM produces the Chairman. The Chairman becomes the Presidential candidate. The candidate wins and becomes President. The President becomes Commander-in-Chief. Therefore, CCM Chairman is Commander-in-Chief by law. And Commander-in-Chief is the owner of JWTZ, Police and National Security.
Analysts say once you understand Article 119, you understand why Chacha said CCM owns the security organs.
Dr. Peter Nathan, a Constitutional Lawyer from the University of Dar es Salaam, says:
"Many people read Article 147 which says only Government can own an army, but they forget to read Article 119 of CCM and Article 148 of the National Constitution together. When you read them together, the picture is clear. The Government is led by the President. The President is the Chairman of CCM. So the owner of the Government is CCM. And the owner of the army is the Government. Therefore the owner of the army is CCM. This is what we call State-Party Fusion in political science. Chacha did not invent it, he just stated it."
Dr. Asha Suleiman, Analyst of Party Ideologies from Zanzibar, says:
"There is no independent President in Tanzania. Every President must have a party. And the ruling party is CCM. So when the Constitution says President is Commander-in-Chief, it is indirectly saying CCM Chairman is Commander-in-Chief. In China, the Chairman of the Communist Party is Commander-in-Chief. In America, the leader of the winning party becomes Commander-in-Chief. Tanzania is the same. So Chacha is 100% correct to say the army belongs to CCM. Even if opposition wins tomorrow, their Chairman will become Commander-in-Chief and they will own the army too. That is how power works."
Mwalimu Thomas Ngubila, Historian of TANU and CCM, adds historical proof:
"Article 119 is not new. Since TANU, the leader of the ruling party has been Commander-in-Chief. Mwalimu Nyerere was Chairman of TANU and Commander-in-Chief. He used TANU to create TPDF in 1964 after the army mutiny. He said the army must be loyal to TANU. So JWTZ was born as a child of the party. The Police was nationalized by TANU in 1961. The National Security was created by TANU in 1963 to protect the party's revolution. So historically and legally, TPDF is property of CCM. Without Article 119, there would be no Commander-in-Chief."
Ms. Zainab Hussein, Analyst of Electoral Politics, connects Article 119 to the busing debate:
"People attack Chacha for saying CCM buses people and pays them. But Article 119 explains why. The Chairman must win to become Commander-in-Chief. To win, you need organization. Organization means mobilization. Mobilization worldwide means busing, feeding and paying. America calls it voter mobilization, UK calls it canvassing, Kenya calls it mobilization. CCM calls it oganaizesheni. There is no party in the world that fills stadiums with people walking on foot. So Chacha is telling the truth of Article 119 - to make the Chairman become President, you must organize."
Mr. Felix Kibwana, Political Affairs Analyst, says:
"Article 147(3) says a soldier cannot join a political party. Opposition misreads this. It does not say a political party cannot own a soldier. The law forbids a soldier from having a party card, but it allows the party to own the institution of the army. It is like a company. The driver cannot own the company car for personal use, but the company owns the car and the driver. CCM owns JWTZ as an institution through Article 119 and Article 148. The individual soldier remains non-partisan."
Dr. Donald Mzava, International Relations Analyst, concludes:
"The principle of Article 119 is called State-Party Fusion. It exists in all strong states. The party and the state are one. The citizens vote, but the party manages the vote through state organs. That is why Chacha said all Government leaders are placed by CCM, not by citizens. It is true. The President appoints Ministers, Regional Commissioners, District Commissioners, Judges, Generals, IGP, Director of Security. All those appointments come from the power of Article 119. Even in America, President Biden and Trump appoint their people. If opposition takes power tomorrow, they will do the same and even more, because Article 119 will give their Chairman the same power to own TPDF, Police and Security to protect his rule. That is the law of power."
Analysts say those attacking Comrade Chacha have not read Article 119 and Article 148 together. Once you read them together, the debate ends. CCM Chairman is Commander-in-Chief by law, and therefore CCM is the legal owner of all state security organs.


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