AfricaPress-Tanzania: PEACE campaigners have strongly condemned violence inciting statements by some politicians, imploring youth in the country to snub hostility preachers.
They have further asked the defense and security agencies to act firmly against people bent on disrupting the country’s peace.
Former Chake Chake Member of Parliament on a Civic United Front (CUF) ticket Yusuf Kaiza Makame and his colleagues – Hisham Mohamed Abdukadir, Khamis Nassor Humoud and Omar Haji Omar claimed here that opposition parties had lost focus and were propagating conflicts instead.
“Politicians who advocate wars and conflicts are outdated and they have no place in our modern Zanzibar,” charged Mr Makame, who has already defected to the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM).
He said that what Zanzibaris need today are peace, solidarity and unity among themselves, adding: “Most of us have no other place to run to if the country is plunged into violence…and women and children are always the war victims who suffer most.”
The former legislator said although Zanzibar youth faced many problems, including unemployment and poverty, the wars and conflicts which some individuals are promoting “Will bring us neither jobs nor money, but worsen our problems instead.”
The youthful politician reminded fellow youths of the popular English proverb “Better a dog in peace than a man in war.”
Mr Abdukadir, a CUF publicist for over 15 years, said many youth were being used blindly to fulfill the political interests of a few individuals.
“I am a living proof of wasteful time and intellect to accomplish the interests of few individuals,” he said, arguing that opposition parties had no will to serve wananchi.
He said that despite wasting all his energy and time to serve the opposition party, the only reward he had received in return was mudslinging.
The former CUF communication strategist had since 2018 crossed over to CCM.
“The funny thing about opposition parties is: when an individual defects from CCM to the opposition, that is democracy but the opposite is characterizes as betrayal,” Mr Abdukadir mused.
Mr Omar, a psychology lecturer, remarked: “Zanzibar youth are like a fish monger – they have a fish smell though they haven’t eaten fish.”
