Despite the parliament being dissolved, Tanzanian legislators still have powers to execute important changes before the ultimate deadline of August 3, 2025, including making some crucial reforms in the electoral process.
That was stated by Bishop Jesephat Gwajima, the outgoing member of parliament for Kawe, during a press conference, his second since the controversial remarks issued previously in May, 2025.
“Winning any poll is easy, but governing a country which is fragmented from the wounds of elections is one major challenge, which means political parties need to reach a consensus,” he said.
Due to that, Bishop Josephat Gwajima, advised the ruling party, CCM, to swallow pride and accept reforms, even minimal ones, before Tanzanians go to vote in November.
After all, there is nothing to worry because with 10 million CCM members, the winning is guaranteed.
“Let us grant the opposition the reforms they want so that all parties can participate in the forthcoming General Elections, because going to polls leaving other people out, it will create a badly divided and unmanageable country,” he said.
Gwajima insisted that he remains a loyal member of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) despite always suffering the consequences of issuing ‘good’ advice that fellow partisans find unacceptable.
Bishop Josephat Gwajima lamented that more than 4 million members of his various churches, 80 pastors and 12 bishops have been affected with the closure of his churches nationwide.
The church leader and politician, Gwajima, expressed concern and worry that his advice to the state that cases of abductions, enforced disappearances and killings need to be stopped.
“You may close my churches for the next 100 years, but I will never stop speaking against enforced disappearance of people in the country,” Gwajima reiterated.
On May 24, 2025 Bishop Gwajima had called a press conference to complain against cases of abductions where most innocent people keep disappearing in the country and some ending up dead.
According to the Bishop, he had previously said more than 80 people had been abducted in the country but the Tanganyika Law Society (TLS)’s recent report indicates that so far over 95 people have so far been abducted or disappeared under mysterious circumstances.
He recalled the recent incident in which the Tanga Regional Commissioner recently admitted that four people have also been discovered dead in Handeni.
Gwajima insisted that he still doesn’t understand why security organs are not aware of the problem but explained that at the moment people don’s address the problem but deal with the result, on that prevention is better than cure
“We need to protect security enforcers, so that when they deal with crime these people will not suffer any possible consequences from their superiors, in case personal interest crops up,” the bishop added.
“To a politician, anything which gives you victory is a necessary tool,” Gwajima maintained, adding that when politicians intervene in matters of security, the country will be in danger.
He therefore cautioned not to politicize security organs like the police, the army and intelligence units, that may be left to have their own independence, as far as decision making and duty execution is concerned.