PRESIDENT Jakaya Kikwete has cautioned Tanzanians against getting involved in religious bigotry or being divided on religious lines.
He said that this was a foreign-founded ideology that would eventually lead the nation to bloodshed. The president sounded the warning on Monday morning when addressing Kagera Regional leaders at the end of his six-day tour of the region.
“Religion is not on our agenda. There appears to be a few people in our midst who are not happy with the prevailing peace.
They would like to see Tanzanians fighting each other in connection with religious faith, a situation that could degenerate into genocide. “We should not allow this to happen,” he said.
He said that such evil-minded people would like to foment hatred through politics. “If we allow ourselves to mix politics with religion, this scenario would culminate in a sad situation,” he said.
The president also challenged the Immigration Department to ensure that the screening of foreigners who are hiding in villages is conducted thoroughly.
Kagera Region, for example, has an estimated 35,000 illegal immigrants. He said if the exercise was not done properly, Tanzania would face an enormous task after a period of between 50 and 60 years.
He noted that some of the leaders, including village executive officers (VEO), ward executive officers (WEO) and councillors had turned themselves to immigration officers.
They are busy issuing ‘illegal resident permits.’ “Illegal issuance of resident permits is done in daylight and leaders in this region keep a blind eye. This is corruption because your services are bought at a very low price and the aliens know this.
That is why the number of illegal immigrants keeps soaring,” he said. The president said that Tanzania does not dislike foreigners. “We receive foreigners daily. But those who wish to remain in the country must follow prevailing immigration procedures,” he said.
He pointed out that in 1982 the late Father of the Nation, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere granted citizenship to 30,000 Burundi refugees. “In fact, during his tenure of eight years Mwalimu Nyerere granted citizenship to more than 160,000 refugees.
In another development, President Kikwete has issued a strong warning against individuals who own firearms unlawfully. He has directed authorities to ensure that the culprits surrender the weapons to the Police Force within two weeks.
President Kikwete’s warning comes in the backdrop of a recent atrocity wherein a group of ten heavily armed bandits ambushed several buses along Muleba-Biharamulo road and robbed the passengers of property, whose value has not yet been established.
“We cannot allow Tanzanians to be terrorized by criminals,” he said. He pointed out that the government will soon conduct an operation involving Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF), the Police Force and the Intelligence Unit during which illegal weapons will be confiscated.
TanzaniaDailyNews
