FOLLOWING a series of heinous acts of kidnapping and killing of civilians in Tanzania, Bishop Benson Bagonza of the Evangelical Lutheran in Tanzania (ELCT) Karagwe Diocese, has ‘cried for his ailing nation.’ On his Facebook page, he writes in Kiswahili:
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THEY DON’T ABDUCT PEOPLE, THEY ABDUCT OUR FREEDOM.
I have experienced two losses at the same time. I have lost my dear friend, the late Bishop Chediel Sendoro. The value of our friendship was built on tolerance.
The second loss is of my beloved nation, which I have served with all my heart. People who are known but pretend to be unknown have hijacked the freedom and peace of my country. They think they are abducting individuals—critics, agitators, opposition figures—but in reality, they are seizing our nation’s freedom and peace. A nation without freedom becomes dead, equivalent to just a piece of land.
I am in mourning, and I reflect on the following:
In 2001, we had refugees after the general election in the Zanzibar islands. The late Benjamin Mkapa regretted that event before his death. Citizens fleeing their own country is not something to be proud of. I have been a refugee; I do not wish for anyone else to experience that.
After the 2019 local government election and the 2020 general election, we once again saw people leaving as refugees. The arrival of President Samia brought them back home. Let us stop sending more refugees abroad. Let us trade goods, not our people. Whoever likes to create refugees should become refugees themselves.
All countries that have gone through what we experienced in 2020—such as Germany, Rwanda, Bosnia, and others—have one thing in common: they vow NEVER AGAIN. We did not make such a vow when we launched the 4R’s (Reconciliation, Resilience, Reforms, Rebuilding). The Reconciliation Committee, Mkandala Commission, and the Criminal Justice Commission have not helped us. Let’s try Rwanda’s “Gacaca” or South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). Let us, as a nation, vow: NEVER AGAIN.
Those who say “SAMIA MUST GO” are no different from those who said (of her predecessor John Magufuli), “WHETHER HE LIKES IT OR NOT.” Both are violations of the constitution. We tolerated the former; let us listen to the latter. Empty words don’t break bones. What happened when they said “Whether he likes it or not”?
The use of force benefits no one. For those in power, it’s like breaking cups and then having to bear the cost of replacing them after a conflict. For those without power, it’s paying taxes to replace the broken cups. Using force is a declaration of failure; it’s no different from rape after being denied love. Stop the rape.
When freedom is lost, no one is safe. If your master uses you to kill, the same master will no longer trust you. They will send someone to kill you to secure themselves, and the cycle will never end. We are all one family; let us not abduct or kill one another. Those being protected are captives of their protectors. Let us protect freedom at all costs. We will all benefit.
When freedom was hijacked in 2020, all institutions suffered. A one-party parliament is disliked even by its members. One-party councils are disliked even by termites. Judicial independence was taken, leaving it in name only. Those abducted in the fifth phase found themselves abductors in the sixth. There are signs of a democracy hijacking in 2024 and 2025. Who wants a one-thought nation?
What is surprising now is that there is no difference between “arresting” and “abducting.” When it is reported that “we have arrested someone,” witnesses say “they have been abducted.” Those arrested and abducted then left us with sacks. Why do we spend so much money teaching people to arrest, only for them to become abductors?
Killing doesn’t have to be mass murder. Even one death is too many, because some parents are blessed with only one child. That child is their world. Let us not devalue human blood just because it has no price. Every human has the divine within them. Let us not kill God!
An investigation has been ordered. Self-examination is hard, as President Samia once said. The cries of those questioning the investigation are like the wails of mourners. The shooters have finished their work. The crying ones should not be told how to grieve. I greatly fear someone who is hit but doesn’t cry more than one who cries without being hit.
With a clear conscience and sacrifice for my nation.
Christians often sing, “Take everything else, but leave me with Jesus.”
All Tanzanians of all ideologies, faiths, and statuses, let us sing, “Take everything else, but leave us our freedom to think, speak, assemble, worship, and breathe.”
ANOTHER MEDIA REPORT OF THE SAME MATTER
USA Ambassador responds to President Samia’s warning against foreign diplomats
