Political development in Tanzania since Independence

The European powers divided Africa at the Berlin Conference of 1884/85. The powers used the Berlin Act in administering their colonies in Africa. Colonial administrators made constitutions which served the interests of the colonial powers. Tanganyika gained her independence on 9 th December 1961. Since her independence, Tanzania has been experiencing several changes. The changes are the result of the effort to bring socio-economic and political development to its citizens. One of the main issues in the post-colonial period in Tanzania and Africa at large had to do with the need to address the colonial political legacies. Tanganyikan leaders made new constitutions that would address the needs of the newly independent nations. The focus was on the distribution of political powers, citizens' responsibilities and the leaders drawing legitimacy from the people rather than from the colonial powers.

Constitutional changes in Tanzania after independence

A constitution is the basic principle and law of a nation, state or social group which determines the distribution of the powers and duties of the government and citizens, and which guarantees certain rights to both leaders and citizens. Therefore, the constitution is the fundamental law in a country. There are two constitutions in the United Republic of Tanzania. One is the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania of 1977, which includes the Union Matters. The other is the Constitution of Zanzibar of 1984. A constitution can either be written or unwritten. Tanzania has a written constitution. From 1961 to the present, Tanzania has undergone five major constitutional changes. The first constitution was referred to as the Independence Constitution of Tanganyika of 1961. The Independence Constitution replaced the Colonial Constitution. This constitution was promulgated in London by the United Kingdom Parliament and was directly imposed on Tanganyika. It was characterised by a Westminster model with a sovereign parliamentary, multiparty democracy and a prime minister and a governor-general who represented Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom, Elizabeth II, as the formal head of state. The constitution did not include a Bill of Rights. The executive was led by a prime minister, chosen from a party with the largest number of parliamentary seats. Under this constitution Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere became the first prime minister. The constitution also established the independence of the judiciary. However, the Independence Constitution lasted for only one year. The second constitution was the Republican Constitution of 1962. The ruling party, TANU, had expressed its wish to have a republican form of government with an executive president. The Government White Paper entitled "Proposals of Tanganyika Government for a Republic" was published, discussed and adopted by the National Assembly so that it could have legal force. As a result, Julius Nyerere was elected the first executive president of the Republic of Tanganyika in 1962.

The third constitution was known as the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar of 1964. In 1964, Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged to form the United Republic of Tanzania. Acting under authority conferred on him by Articles of Union and through Government Notice No. 246 of 1 st May 1964, the president of Tanzania modified the Republic Constitution of 1962 in accordance with the agreements which TANU and Zanzibar's ruling party, the Afro-Shirazi Party (ASP), had signed by issuing a decree entitled "The Interim Constitution Decree of 1964", which established the Interim Constitution of the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. The agreements were ratified under the name "Articles of Union" and included in the new constitution as "Acts of Union". The most notable feature of Acts of Union was the establishment of the two-tier government structure. This structure includes one government for the Union and another one for Zanzibar. Zanzibar's government included its own president and a Revolutionary Council. The president of Zanzibar had executive powers over all matters related to Zanzibar. The president of Zanzibar also served as the first vice-president of the Union. The prime minister of the Union also became the second vice-president of the Union. Under this Constitution, the Union made Tanganyika and Zanzibar one sovereign state. The government of Tanganyika was replaced by the Union government, which dealt with the Union Matters and non-Union Matters related to Tanganyika. There are Union Matters:

1. external affairs;
2. defence;
3. police;
4. emergency powers;
5. citizenship;
6. immigration;
7. external trade and borrowing;
8. the Public Service of the United Republic;
9. income tax, corporation tax, customs and excise duties; and
10. harbours, civil aviation, posts and telegraphs
11. the Constitution and the government of the United Republic

Zanzibar's constitution

In Zanzibar, the history of constitution- making goes back to the Independence Constitution of 1963. This constitution provided for monarchy leadership, with the sultan as the head of state and few executive powers exercised on the advice of the Cabinet. However, the constitution was repealed by the Zanzibar Revolution of 1964. Zanzibar was ruled using a presidential decree passed by the Revolutionary Council. The council held both the executive and legislative powers from 1964 to the early 1980. As a result, Zanzibar did not have a constitution from 1964 to 1979 when the Revolutionary Council passed the first democratic constitution of 1979 under the president of Zanzibar and the chairperson of the Revolutionary Council, Aboud Jumbe Mwinyi. The 1979 constitution created a legislative body called the House of Representatives. This was followed by the first national election after the Zanzibar Revolution. The house is mandated to oversight the government of Zanzibar. It was founded on 14th January 1980. Zanzibar adopted a new constitution in 1979. Many scholars call this constitution the first constitution of Zanzibar. They say so on the grounds that there was no constitutional continuity between the pre-1964 and the post-1964 political state. This new constitution provided for the same branches of government as those provided for the Union Constitution. It made the nomination of a presidential candidate slightly more democratic; a special committee submits two proposed candidates to the National Executive Committee of the party (Chama cha Mapinduzi), which nominates one candidate. The name of that presidential candidate is presented to the electorate rather than the Revolutionary Council.

Significance of constitutional changes in Tanzania after independence

The constitutional changes made in Tanzania spearheaded the development of Tanzania after independence, as follows. The changes abolished all forms of segregation in the provision of social services such as health, education, water, transport and housing. Furthermore, the changes forbade exploitation. The changes broadened participatory democracy in Tanzania. For example, general elections are held every five years. Parliament also got the power to impeach the president through a vote of no confidence. The changes increased the percentage of special seats women MPs from 15 per cent to 20 per cent, depending on declarations that the National Electoral Commission makes from time to time. Moreover, it could be argued that the constitutional changes strengthened unity between the people of Zanzibar and Tanganyika (Mainland Tanzania). Finally, the constitutional changes made the observance of human rights mandatory. This was evident in the amendment made in 1983/1984 when a Bill of Human Rights was incorporated into the constitution. Thus, people are guaranteed freedom of movement, freedom of association, freedom of religion, the right to privacy and personal security, the right to life, personal freedom, freedom to participate in public affairs, the right to work, the right to just remuneration and the right to own property. Generally, the independence constitutions were made to address the colonial political and social legacies and vested the sovereignty in the people; thus, the state and its organs drive their powers from the people. Moreover, the amendments are intended to address the political, economic and social changes taking place in the world and affecting Tanzania. The amendments ensure that the authority to run the affairs of the country belong to the citizens. The power and authority of the government is derived from the citizens through the constitution.