CCM’s Chadema Spin on Doctors’ Strike and Ulimboka’s
Torture


By

Dr.
Azaveli Feza Lwaitama

(Retired)Senior Lecturer

Philosophy
Program

University
of Dar es Salaam

kerezesia_mukalugaisa@hotmail.com

For two weeks now one has greeted by the
sad spectacle of news of one of the most abominable human rights violations to
have ever taken place in the entire history of Tanzania. This is the abduction
and horrible torture of the leader of the current doctors’ strike, Dr. Ulimboka
Stephen.  The plucking of Dr. Ulimboka’s
teeth and finger nails without applying anaesthesia and the alleged smashing of
his private parts is particularly horrendous.

Dr. Ulimboka told fellow doctors when he
briefly gained a measure of full consciousness at the Muhimbili Orthopaedics
Institute (MOI), several hours after the terrible night-long ordeal. Dr. Ulimboka has claimed that the heavily armed people who abducted and inhumanely tortured
him and left him for dead in the Pande forest in Mabwepande village, on the
outskirts of the Dar es Salaam Region, kept asking him to agree to corroborate
the allegation that the doctors’ strike was a political scheme instigated by
Chadema.

It is in this case curious that there
have been reports emanating from the current session of the Tanzania Parliament
to the effect that Parliamentarians hailing from the ruling party CCM have been
arguing that the doctors’ strike is a result of evil machinations by the main
opposition party Chadema.  The CCM Parliamentarians
who have been pushing this Chadema spin on the reasons for the devastating doctors’
strike happen to be, among others, the National Treasurer of CCM and a member
of its Central Committee and a Regional Commissioner who is a recent appointee
of the incumbent CCM Presidency.  

The CCM Parliamentarians claim that the
doctors’ strike has not arisen because doctors have genuine employment related
grievances but that rather the strike has been instigated by the main
opposition party Chadema bent on making the country ungovernable.  Even Prime Minister, in answering a question
in Parliament fielded by another CCM Parliamentarian, agreed that the
government has “heard” about the allegation that the doctors’ strike may have
been a result of political scheming. The Prime Minister, however, was
circumspect, telling Parliament that the government has directed relevant
government investigative organs to look into the matter and report back on the
validity of the allegations.

It is not clear whether indeed the
government investigative organs have already reported back to the government on
whether there existed empirical evidence to support a Chadema role in the
staging of the doctors’ strike. It is in this case not inconceivable that the
abduction and torture of Dr. Ulimboka may have been part of efforts by
individuals in the government investigative organs who may have been
overzealous in wanting to establish such empirical evidence to support a
Chadema spin on the doctors’ strike. These are the individuals in the
government investigative organs, who may  happen to be covert CCM enthusiasts, may
perhaps be the “sources” who have been supplying bits of leaks to CCM
Parliamentarians who are making these curious outbursts in Parliament meant to
sustain a Chadema spin on the doctors’ strike.

  

It is to the credit of the spin doctors
who assisted President Jakaya Kikwete  in
putting together his traditional end of the month speech  for June released last Sunday night  that 
that Presidential speech  stayed
clear of any reference to the Chadema spin on the reasons for what is deemed by
government, as well as overzealously partisan CCM Parliamentarians like
Honourable Mwigulu Nchemba and Honourable Stella Manyanya, as the doctors’
continued refusal to accept government terms in the negotiations with the doctors
right up to when they decided to stage the strike.

Listening to the President’s speech one
was given to feel that the public was being encouraged to believe that the doctors
were for some unknown reason not being appreciative of what the government has
so far been able to do in improving the lot of the doctors and matters in
general in the health sector.  The
situation is thus confusing. Since Dr. Ulimboka is said to have mentioned names
of senior police officials who he alleged to have participated in his torture,
it would be wise if President Kikwete, who is the CCM national Chairman,
instituted an independent inquiry in to the abduction and torture of Dr.
Ulimboka.  Such an inquiry is urgent
especially considering that CCM Parliamentarians have sought to offer a Chadema
spin on the reasons for the doctors’ strike. The public needs to be reassured
that the incumbent CCM-led government does not tolerate the existence in the government
investigative machinery rogue elements whose attitude towards their
professional intelligence gathering work does not rule out use of torture and
the committing of crimes against humanity in the name of preserving public
order.  The inquiry could only be seen as
independent if it is at least led by an independent minded retired judge. 

—

* THE CITIZEN COULD NOT PUBLISH THIS ARTICLE AS PART OF THE CRITICAL THINKING COLUMN DUE TO REASONS THAT THE AUTHOR HAS PROMISED NOT TO DISCLOSE TO THE PUBLIC, IT IS POSTED HERE FOR WIDER CIRCULATION.

** READ THE MEDICAL ASSOCIATION OF TANZANIA’S (MAT) LETTER TO THE UN ENTITLED ‘SECURITY THREATS TOWARDS MEDICAL DOCTORS IN TANZANIA’ AT http://www.wavuti.com/4/post/2012/07/just-in-chama-cha-madaktari-tz-chawasilisha-maombi-un-ya-ulinzi-kwa-viongozi-wake.html#axzz20AijLkR9.