By Peter Tindwa
Published May 11th 2004 in IPP Media (Tanzania)
Every registered political party in Tanzania that has taken part in the elections, but did not win a seat in the Parliament will be represented under proportional representation system to be introduced next year.
The Speaker of the National Assembly, Pius Msekwa, said this in Dar es Salaam yesterday during talks with a visiting seven-man delegation of the American Council of Young Political Leaders from the United States.
“We want to introduce a proportional representation system to ensure every political party is represented in the Parliament. The introduction is part of our efforts to strengthen democracy,” he stated.
According to the Speaker, the new system will be effective after the forthcoming general elections.“We have come to understand that there is a need to improve our electoral system because currently some political parties get few seats,” he said.
He said since the introduction of multiparty democracy a decade ago, opposition parties have continued to gain ground, competing aggressively with the ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM).
Msekwa, however, acknowledged that our parliamentary system is different from that of the US.“We are in the learning process, gaining experience from other countries to lay down a strong foundation for democracy,” he said.
Under multiparty system, the electorate has a wider range of choice, to elect their representative or leader, he added.Commenting on the country’s determination to ensure peace and stability in neighbouring countries, Msekwa said Tanzania has continued to work with other countries to restore peace and stability in the Great Lakes Region, specifically in Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Marjorie Strayer, Adrian Smith, Lee Wendell Loder, Mark Luckner, Denny Sumpter, Charles Davis and Janea Homoquist form the seven-man delegation.
Strayer told Msekwa that they are in Tanzania to exchange views in politics and parliamentary affairs, democracy, local governments’ operations, poverty eradication strategies and progress attained in economic reforms.
Yesterday evening the delegation was scheduled for discussions with the Speaker of the Zanzibar House of Representatives, Kificho Ameir Pandu.
Members of the delegation are visiting the country at the invitation of the Bunge Foundation, which operates under the auspices of the Office of the Speaker.
Election Day '09 was a roller-coaster for election reformers. Instant runoff voting had a great night in Minnesota, where St. Paul voters chose to implement IRV for its city elections, and Minneapolis voters used IRV for the first time—with local media touting it as a big success. As the Star-Tribune noted in endorsing IRV for St. Paul, Tuesday’s elections give the Twin Cities a chance to show the whole state of Minnesota the benefits of adopting IRV. There were disappointments in Lowell and Pierce County too, but high-profile multi-candidate races in New Jersey and New York keep policymakers focused on ways to reform elections; the Baltimore Sun and Miami Herald were among many newspapers publishing commentary from FairVote board member and former presidential candidate John Anderson on how IRV can mitigate the problems of plurality elections.