This archive report was first published on 30 November 2019.
Published on November 30, 2019, Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu has declared his readiness to contest for the presidency in 2020.
Lissu, who has been abroad for two years for treatment after being shot by unknown people, expressed confidence that support for the opposition is growing despite government restrictions.
Speaking in an interview on Kenya's KTN television station, Lissu stated that he has fully recovered but cannot return to Tanzania due to security concerns.
"I was supposed to die from the shooting or from lack of treatment. The agents responsible are now warning through the Internet that this time they will not miss," he said.
Lissu expressed concern that the opposition is under siege, with members being hunted down, arrested, jailed, and bought, and that the president is using unconstitutional means to finish the opposition.
He noted that the opposition has never said no to dialogue but that the environment does not promote dialogue.
On being stripped of his parliamentary seat, Lissu stated, "The law says that a seat can be declared vacant if the holder misses three consecutive sittings. The Speaker says I did not officially notify parliament but everybody knows that I was shot 16 times and I was unconscious for one week. How can you notify the speaker in such circumstances?"
