
Tanzania’s lawmakers on Friday approved a package of electoral reforms despite strong objections from the main opposition Chadema party, which has vowed to continue protesting the legislation.
Chadema argues that the three bills passed by parliament do not address concerns over the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election, which was won by the late authoritarian leader John Magufuli by a wide margin amid widespread allegations of fraud.
However, the government of President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who took over after Magufuli’s death in 2021, maintains that the reforms will strengthen democracy in the East African nation.
Thousands of people participated in a demonstration organized by Chadema last week, calling on the government to withdraw the bills and urging for greater independence for the electoral commission.
Lawmakers debated the bills for several days before voting on them on Friday. Parliament speaker Tulia Ackson said, “We have fulfilled our duty by approving the bills. We will now send them to the President for assent.”
Chadema has singled out for criticism a provision that would allow President Hassan to directly appoint five of the 10 members of the electoral commission before the next presidential election, scheduled for next year.
The Chadema demonstration last week in Dar es Salaam, the country’s commercial capital, was the largest since the government lifted a ban on opposition political rallies a year ago.
“We haven’t seen any changes since the first protest in Dar es Salaam,” said Chadema secretary general John Mnyika. “Instead, the government disregarded our demands and proceeded with debating the contentious bills.”