Between Confusion and Clarity: Rethinking the Union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar after 50 Years

Mohammed Bakari, Alexander A. Makulilo

Abstract


In spite of its endurance for fifty years, one of the defining features of the Tanganyika-Zanzibar union is confusion attributable to both its structure and modus operandi. This state of confusion cuts across a wide range of actors including the founding fathers themselves and their close associates, ordinary citizens, politicians, foreigners and intellectuals. In the context of the ongoing process of writing a new constitution, it is imperative to revisit the union with the aim of seeking for more clarity on the proposed federal structure of three-governments in the Draft Constitution of 2013.The main argument of this article is that the current two-tier government structure as laid down in the Articles of Union of 1964 inherently leads to confusion. Whereas the proposed union structure may not be a panacea to problems of confusion, it may, with some refinement, be instrumental in addressing various dimensions of confusion and in generating clearly defined institutions and jurisdictions.

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References


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