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As
Tanzanians today bid goodbye to year 2012 and happy new year 2013, they look forward to yet
another eventful year ahead that starts today.
Last year was bad for many people, what withit being ushered in
by such calamities as the Msimbazi river floods in December-
January in Dar es Salaam that left thousands of people homeless
up to now.
Then there were bombs
that exploded fromarmy depots camps at Gongo la Mboto which had
devastating effects on neighbourhoodresidents.
There were, furthermore, ghastly road accidents that led to loss
of life and limb for many passengers, and religious skirmishes in
both Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar. As they year 2013
unfolds,Tanzanians shouldreflect on shortcomings and chart the
best way forward. Army camps, for instance, shouldbe located at
distances far away from wananchi, to avoid disasters like
Mbagala’s and Gongo la Mboto’s.
We understand that when they were first set upthey were in remote
areas that were inaccessible to members of the public.But, as
the population grew, people slowly started to move near them,
what with the army being the people’s defence force. Slowly
people built makeshift structures and later permanent ones,
finding in soldiers a ready market for selling food and other
items.
But the
authorities concerned were unwittingly courting disaster.Be that
as it may, however, we find it odd that there are people still living in
tents at Mabwepande where survivors of floods along Msimbazi
River were shifted to, a year on.
As for traffic accidents, much has been said, but it needs the
will of everybody concerned to keep them to the barest minimum.
These include the traffic police, drivers, Surface and Marine
Transport Authority (Sumatra), Tanzania Roads Agency (Tanroads),
legislators and law courts.
They should crack their heads to find solutions to the problem of
recurring road accidents, and not only issue orders from the
comfort of their air-conditioned offices.
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