Let’s Not Take National Peace for Granted, Says Clergy

The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)

25 April 2011

Dar Es Salaam — Church leaders yesterday used Easter sermons to call for sobriety in debates on the envisaged new Constitution and war on corruption, warning that any segments of the society seeking to use the availed platform to gain political mileage could plunge the country into anarchy.

The bishops and other senior clergy told thousands of faithful who thronged various churches to mark the resurrection of Jesus Christ that Tanzania faced numerous challenges which required upright leadership, unity of purpose and harmony to build a prosperous nation.

In sentiments echoing messages that have been coming from the clergy since the onset of the long Easter holidays, people were warned against politicians out to use their power and influence to divide people while using available platform to sow seeds of hatred amongst wananchi.

Preaching at the St Joseph’s Cathedral, Dar es Salaam Catholic Archdiocese auxiliary bishop Eusebius Nzigilwa, said political parties should desist from seeking to own the Constitutional Review process.

Bishop Nzigilwa said a new constitution must be for national development and not pegged on political party’s manifesto.”The new constitution shouldn’t be a tool for the ruling party to consolidate its power or the opposition parties to enable them to ouster the ruling party,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Tanzania, Dr Valentino Mokiwa, said the country won’t escape unrest if the current disrespect to law and order persists.

He noted that wild promises given by political leaders in public rallies could result in discontent since they are hardly ever implemented. The head of the Anglican Church was speaking in a special Easter interview on State-owned Television, TBC1.

“When you see law and order collapse and national matters lack monitoring, there is bloodshed ahead of us; we are not wishing that to happen, but there are warning signs,” he warned.He said stress among the public was building countrywide, with leaders blasting one another left and right, with hardly one side speaking well of the other.

“Recently we witnessed our MPs, for the first time, insulting each other, this is a bad trend,” he added. He said the culture of mudslinging was gaining currency. He warned that democracy was being misconstrued as a system of seeking power by way of locking out others. “Misuse of public wealth and lack of mutual respect have increased not only in the government but even in the churches,” he said.

He said the hype on the country’s economic growth was not reflected on the quality of life of the majority of Tanzanians, most of whom were living in abject poverty.

Meanwhile, while delivering his sermon yesterday in Church, Bishop Mokiwa called for maintenance of peace as the way of remembering Jesus Christ.”It’s important that today, we speak of peace in our country,” he said and challenged the media, particularly the Western media, not only to outline poverty but show the poor how to get out of their predicament.

Bishop Renard Mtenji of the Lutheran Church in Ulanga, Kilombero, urged believers to stand firm against corruption and other evils in the society.Speaking during the Easter Mass, Bishop Mtenji said people were being denied their rights because of money, noting that this wasn’t the way to please God.

“Several forms of brutality are rife; children are raped over witchcraft beliefs. It’s common today to hear that a mother has killed her own child,” he said.

For his part, Anglican Bishop Godfrey Mhogolo of the Central Diocese said the uprising in Libya should be a lesson to Tanzania to safeguard peace.Addressing an Easter Mass in Dodoma, Bishop Mhogolo said the public should not take for granted the existing peace. He called on the ruling party to recognise opposition parties as the way of strengthening democracy.

Meanwhile, Archbishop Zacharia Kakobe of the Full Gospel Bible Fellowship Church in Dar es Salaam told his congregation to look for “soul hearing” instead of “physical hearing” as they celebrate Easter. He counselled that it was only a hearing soul that would lead a believer to heaven.

He said marking of Jesus’ resurrection must be a lesson for every person to abandon sin since Christ sacrificed Himself to provide every believer with hearing.”If you continue committing sin as you don’t believe in Him, it means that you’re punishing Him for the second time,” he said.

Reported by Bernard Lugongo in Dar, Venance George, Morogoro, Daniel Mjema and Rehema Matowo in Moshi, Awila Silla in Dodoma

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