Z`bar AG drums up three govt structure

BY GUARDIAN ON SUNDAY CORRESPONDENT

18th August 2013

Zanzibar Attorney General Othman Masoud Othman yesterday said the current two-tier government system is a burden, proposing adoption of three-tier one to reduce expenses incurred by the isles government.

Opening a constitutional forum attended by students from higher learning institutions, Othman said under the current structure Zanzibar officials spent much time on the Mainland to follow up issues concerning isles people.

“There is not good argument to support the two-tier structure... as far as we are concerned it costs us a lot,” he said.

He added that if one conducts a research one would find a huge chunk of money from Zanzibar coffers going into footing travel bills for government officials.

Drumming up a three-tier government structure, the AG said it would strengthen the union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar as each side would deal with its stake explicitly as stated in the Union.

He described Zanzibar position in the Union as a ‘political sub-division,’ underlining that hiding Tanganyika in the Union government was hypocrisy of high level.

The Zanzibar AG referred to the 1984 attempt by former Zanzibar President Aboud Jumbe to take Zanzibar out of the Union, saying it was genuine one.

It was unfair for some people in political circles to brand Jumbe as an individual poor in arithmetic by demanding a three-tier government structure. The circles equated such a political development to 1+1=3.

In another development, the Chairman of Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) Judge Joseph Warioba yesterday said it was not the business of his commission to convince public to accept proposals in the draft as claimed by some individuals.

Warioba said this in Morogoro when responding to questions from members of the Morogoro Municipal Constitutional Forum.

“You have the right to demand answers and we in CRC have the duty to provide them in the meetings,” said Judge Warioba.

SOURCE: GUARDIAN ON SUNDAY