Tanzania’s ruling
party Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) has this
Friday, February 28 expelled the former Foreign Affairs and International
Co-operation
Minister and the party’s senior cadre, Bernard
Membe, and stern warning to its former General Secretary, Abdulrahman Kinana.
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| File: Former Tanzania's Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation Minister, Dr. Bernard Membe (R) shaking hands with the Chairman of ruling party (ccm) and President of Tanzania, John Magufuli (Courtesy) |
The
decisions were reached during the Central Committee’s meeting that among other
things received and discussed a report submitted by its Ethics and Security
committee.
The
committee was ordered to summon and question the former Minister together with
other former Secretary Generals of the party, Abdulrahman Kinana and Yusuph
Makamba for an alleged misconduct indicating serious diversion from party
ethics and traditions.
Reading
the committee’s resolutions to journalists at the Dar es Salaam offices in the city, party’s Secretary
of Ideology and Publicity, Humphrey Polepole, said the decision to strip Membe
of his membership was reached after following the trend of his unethical political
behaviour since 2014.
“He
has been committing ethical violations since 2014 and received various warnings
that intended to give him opportunity to change his behaviours something he has
not. Therefore, the committee has resolved to strip off his party membership
with immediate effect,” said Polepole.
He
said the Central Committee has also given stern warning to Kinana shall be
under close observation for the coming 18 months.
“During
this period he is not allowed to vie for any position in the party, except that
he is retains his right to vote,” Polepole said.
Regarding
the other former Secretary General, Makamba, he said the party’s committee has
collectively resolved to forgive him after displaying a high level of
remorsefulness.
“During
the whole investigation period, Makamba has been a gentlemen, obedient and
humble to the party. Therefore, the CC has collectively resolved to forgive
him,” said Polepole.
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| Former CCM Secretary General, Abdulrahman Kinana (L) and Membe building a water tank (Courtesy) |
Membe
appeared before the party’s Ethics Committee in Dodoma on February 7, where he
was interrogated for five hours while Kinana and Makamba appered before the
committee on February 10 this year at the CCM offices in Dar es Salaam.
He
vied for presidential nominations within his party in the 2015 general election,
He had shown the intention of challenging President John Magufuli in presidential
nomination within CCM for this year’s general elections
Dr. Membe served as a national security analyst at
the President's Office from 1978 to 1989. He thereafter attended Johns Hopkins
University in Washington, D.C. where he studied
international relations from 1990 to 1992.
In 1992, he was assigned to serve as an Advisor
of the Tanzanian High Commissioner in Ottawa, Canada, where he served until
2000.
In 2000, he
was elected as a CCM Member of Parliament representing Mtama constituency
in the general election. He was
re-elected in 2005 and 2010.
The 4th President of Tanzania,
Jakaya Kikwete, appointed him as Deputy Minister of Home Affairs after the
2005 general election then appointed as Deputy Minister of Energy and Minerals
following a cabinet reshuffle in October 2006.
In January
2007, Dr. Membe was appointed as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and
International Co-operation after his predecessor Asha-Rose
Migiro was appointed as the United Nations Deputy
Secretary-General by the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
He has also served as a member of the National
Executive Committee of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi party since 2007;
having been re-elected in 2012 at the 8th CCM Congress in Dodoma.
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