This archive report was first published on 19 August 2019.
Published on August 19, 2019, by Jenerali Ulimwengu, a renowned author and advocate of the High Court in Dar es Salaam.
Our governance system, which gives the head of state the power to appoint regional and district governors, has been a subject of debate. I have long argued that citizens should elect their own governors to promote accountability and responsibility.
However, my views have shifted after realizing that the colonial system we have preserved is designed to ensure total control across the land. It is a system of patronage that runs from State House to the district.
Local governors have become a source of entertainment, with some showing talent that could stand them in good stead if they chose to retire and join Bollywood. One governor, in particular, has promised to help abandoned babies and their mothers by forcing delinquent fathers to behave.
Another governor has announced his intention to establish a national database of married men to prevent false promises of marriage. While it is unclear how this would help, it is a comical solution to a complex problem.
Our rulers tend to share in comical things like this. The Dar es Salaam chief took a page out of the book of the Nairobi governor, who has announced his intention to come to the rescue of damsels in distress in a similar fashion.
It is time for us to demand that there be established a database of all married women so that when they come to dates with sweet nothings about marrying us, we would be armed with solid info about their tricky and dishonest ways.
