Tanzania's ruling CCM party is a dictatorial outfit just like the Chinese Communist Party, after which it is fashioned.
It is a violent party which has traditionally rigged elections and assassinated, jailed and harassed its political opponents.
Tanzania’s descent into State-driven blood-letting is the most significant case of State collapse since the post-election violence in Kenya in 2007. It also caught many by surprise: Tanzanian society is first class material for democracy. The people are moderate, they love to debate, they are nationalistic and love their country and do everything possible to protect its image. This patina of politeness and civility papered over widespread, simmering discontent over how the country is governed and how its rulers are chosen.
Tanzanians might be democrats, CCM is not. It is a dictatorial party just like the Chinese Communist Party, after which it is fashioned, and considers it its duty to choose leaders as matter of duty and right. Just like the CCP, CCM takes it as its responsibility to identify, train, nurture and deploy leaders as it sees fit and it doesn’t really consider the public to have a significant role in any of that business. It is also a violent party which has traditionally and routinely rigged elections – sometimes to as ridiculous extents as NRM in Uganda – and assassinated, jailed and harassed its political opponents.
