ALAT to back pro-devolution presidential candidate

Arusha. The  Association of Local Authorities of Tanzania (ALAT) declared yesterday that it would rally behind and support any presidential candidate who will show readiness to improve local democratic governance by implementing the policy of decentralization by devolution.

Tanzania adopted decentralisation legislation in the late 1990s, which aims to devolve significant powers to locally elected urban and rural councils to manage manpower, revenue generation, planning and budgeting.

ALAT chairman Didas Masaburi gave the position in Arusha yesterday when closing a four-day training  programme on capacity building for local experts and councillors from various district councils across the country.

“Some people are moving here and there in search of the presidency;  ALAT openly declares that we will support a candidate who will be ready to implement the policy of decentralization by devolution that gives wananchi more power to manage their affairs,” said Mr Masaburi, who   is also the mayor of Dar es Salaam.

He said the policy has been in existence for  a long time but has never been implemented fully, the trend he blamed for retarding the development  of people in villages despite government efforts to build more roads  to connect all regions and districts.  

ALAT wants observer status in EAC

The Association of Local Authorities of Tanzania (ALAT) wants to be granted an observer status in the Arusha-based, East African Community (EAC). Speaking in Arusha, the Chairperson of ALAT Dr Didas Masaburi, pointed out that if the current EAC wishes to be people-centred as it claims, then it cannot avoid including local area authorities from the community’s five member states.

Dr Masaburi, who was accompanied by the association’s Secretary, Mr Habram Shamumoyo, was speaking at the climax of the local authority’s constitutional council held in the city.

The assembly had made various recommendations for the 2013 draft constitution, including a need to make the immigration department part of the official security organs.

“Other than just having the army and the police there is need to have the immigration department recognized as an important organ in the official security sector,” stated the ALAT chairman.

The ALAT meeting on constitution reforms made a stab on the proposed three governments system where some of the people who contributed called for the re-establishment of the mainland (Tanganyika) government to operate in-sync with the Zanzibar Government and then form the overall federal Tanzanian government.

“Three governments will be expensive and cumbersome to run and why should we have a federal government at the threshold of forming the East African Federation?” asked Dr Masaburi.

By MARC NKWAME, Tanzania Daily News