Party supremacy and economic enterprises in Tanzania: a case study of the practice of the concept of party supremacy in Tanzania with special reference to the T.A.T. & T.T.P.C

In recent year, the concept of Party Supremacy in Tanzania has been subjected to intense discussion by politicians, bureaucrats and academicians alike. Attempts have been made to define the concept and evaluation its practice. Party Supremacy in Tanzania has generally been defined as the ability and capacity of Party Organs (particularly national organs) to pass resolutions, proclaim policies and supervise the implementation of such resolutions and policies. The Party's status and power have generally been assumed to be natural consequences of the political proclamation of the concept and legalisation of its practice. Evaluation of Party policies in Tanzania has revealed the Party's weakness in executing its supervisory roles. This study traces the evolution of the concept and practice of Party Supremacy in Tanzania special emphasis is placed the Party 's role in economic management in general, and at the enterprise level in particular. On the basis of Tanzanian's developing and practising the concept of Party Supremacy; this study attempts to redefine the concept of Party Supremacy. It is argued that for the Party to be supreme, three conditions are essential. First it ought to have organisational and functional ability and capacity to fulfill its responsibilities of providing political leadership and ideological guidance. Secondly, ought to have legal status, and on he strength of its legality and heavy responsibilities (social, political economic, cultural ideological), it ought to be held high esteeming society. Thirdly, it ought to wield power over agencies of implementation, including the government. In this study an examination and evaluation of the development and practice of Party Supremacy in Tanzania is made the light of the operational definition above. Conceptual and practical shortcomings and limitations are exhaustively discussed. These include constitutional and general political limitations. It is farther argued that, as regards economic management, Party Supremacy has to be practised at the enterprise level. In a country which is in a transition to Socialism, Party Supremacy has to be conceived in terms of transfer of power to the working people (workers and peasants). The Party ought to be the organ through which the working people wield political power, own and control the major means of production and exchange. It is argued that the Party cannot control the economy from national level. The Party at national level can only exercise remote control which my lead to bureaucratisation of public property and finances. The Party at enterprises level, therefore, must be able to fulfill political and ideological obligations. It is suggested that the Party at enterprises level ought to be accorded a higher status than the management and other organs at the enterprises level. It ought to wield political power over the management and other organs at that level. Finally, this study makes policy recommendations, including the need to enact a specific law on Party Supremacy which should make detailed provisions about the Party's status and power. It is further recommended that all acts establishing public corporations should contain provisions for the legal and functional relationships between the Party on the one hand and mass Organisations, the management and management boards on the other.