In Tanzania, boldly challenging the state often meets firm institutional resistance. Photo: Courtesy
By Adonis Byemelwa
In a scene that felt more like a political drama unfolding live before the nation, the charged encounter between Kisesa MP Luhaga Mpina and President Samia Suluhu Hassan during a public rally in Meatu, Simiyu Region, has gripped Tanzanians, igniting debates across social media and political circles alike. The moment was raw, unfiltered, and perhaps a mirror of deeper tremors within the ruling party itself.
Standing before the Head of State on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, Mpina did not mince his words. With a tone sharpened by frustration, he told the President point-blank: Kisesa is still owed development funds.
"Those who say they're not owed—aren’t owed. Their funds should be reallocated to Kisesa," MP Luhaga Mpina declared with striking clarity, his voice cutting through the tense atmosphere of the public rally like a scalpel. It wasn’t just a plea for redirected development funds—it was a daring indictment of the inefficiencies and contradictions buried deep within Tanzania’s fiscal planning machinery.
“But that was just the surface. Beneath Mpina’s bold remarks is a deeper story—the journey of a legislator who has persistently challenged not just bureaucracy, but his own party’s leadership. He’s been the rare voice that dared to question decisions others silently nod to.
In Parliament, he went head-to-head with Speaker Tulia Ackson, grilled Agriculture Minister Hussein Bashe over the sugar importation saga, and called for the resignation of the Finance Minister over opaque fiscal frameworks. Most notably, he has called for the Trade Ministry to be scrapped, accusing Minister Selemani Jafo of being asleep at the wheel as traders and producers nationwide cry foul.
His stances have not gone unnoticed. The CCM Simiyu Regional Chairperson, Shemsa Mohamed, once publicly threatened to expel him from the party, accusing him of defiance and division.
Yet, despite these headwinds, Mpina’s support base appears not only intact—it’s growing. On the ground, many Tanzanians see in him a reflection of their frustrations: broken promises, stagnating projects, and the silence of leaders who choose party loyalty over public accountability.
President Samia did not hold back in response. From the same podium, she dismissed Mpina’s appeal as political theater, accusing him of chasing personal fame and failing to use the proper parliamentary channels to advocate for his constituency.
"Bringing such requests here is seeking popularity," she said, adding that records show Kisesa has benefited significantly from government projects, contradicting Mpina’s claims. It was a public rebuke that underscored the deepening rift, not just between a President and an MP, but between two visions of leadership within CCM.
The bitter truth is this: in Tanzania’s political architecture, challenging the state machinery is often met with institutional cold shoulders. Former Kilwa South MP Suleiman Bungala, famously known as "Bwege," once quipped on the floor of Parliament, “Even if all the opposition left the House, the real opposition would still rise from CCM itself.” In many ways, Mpina is proving him right.
Observers now wonder what is next for the defiant MP. With general elections set for October 2025 and the power to shape CCM’s candidate list resting heavily in the hands of the President and party hierarchy, the stakes are existential.
Will Mpina be cast out, or will he pull a surprise move—perhaps aligning with the opposition, even amid their internal inconsistencies and power-driven betrayals? He’s at a crossroads: either step aside and wait for a climate that rewards principle over patronage, or continue fighting—even if it means walking that path alone.
Nonetheless, one thing feels certain: as Dr. Stockmann declared in An Enemy of the People, “The strongest man is he who stands alone.” And that’s exactly what Mpina seems poised to do—refusing to bow, no matter the cost.
This unfolding saga isn't just about a lawmaker and his President. It's about party supremacy, public accountability, and the price of honesty in a system that often penalizes it. It's about the choice between staying in the comfort of conformity or risking everything for a future generation.
As all this plays out, President Samia continues her tour of the Lake Zone, with a landmark moment expected on June 19 when she will officially open the Kigongo-Busisi Bridge, a game-changing infrastructure project linking Mwanza and Geita over Lake Victoria.
But even that historic ribbon-cutting is now sharing headlines with the fiery exchange in Meatu, where the battle lines of Tanzania’s political future may have just been redrawn.
Social media is already ablaze, echoing the intensity of the moment. For some, Mpina is the voice of the voiceless. For others, he's a rebel too noisy for a party that values order. Either way, the country is watching—and history is already taking notes.