United Republic of Tanzania 1977 Constitution (reviewed 2005) - Page 8 of 20

Table of Contents

PART II. MEMBERS, CONSTITUENCIES AND ELECTION OF MEMBERS

Section 1. Members of the National Assembly

66. Members of Parliament

Subject to the other provisions of this Article, there shall be the following categories of Members of Parliament, that is to say:—
1. members elected to represent constituencies;
2. women members being not less than thirty percentum of all the members mentioned in paragraphs (a), (c), (d), (e) and (f) with qualifications mentioned in Article 67 elected by the political parties in accordance with Article 78, on the basis of proportion of votes;
3. five members elected by the House of Representatives from among its members;
4. the Attorney General;
5. not more than ten members appointed by the President from amongst persons with qualifications specified under paragraphs (a) and (c) of subarticle (1) of Article 67 and, at least five members amongst them shall be women;
6. the Speaker, if he is not elected from amongst the members.
The President and the Vice-President shall each not be a Member of Parliament.
Where a Regional Commissioner is elected a Member of Parliament representing a constituency or where a Member of Parliament representing a constituency is appointed a Regional Conunissioner, the National Assembly shall be deemed to consist of the requisite number of members and its proceedings shall be valid notwithstanding that the ordinary total number of members in terms of this Article shall have been reduced by reason of such election of the Regional Commissioner or such appointment of a constituency member.

67. Qualifications for Member of Parliament

Subject to the provisions contained in this Article, any person shall be qualified for election or appointment as a Member of Parliament if he –
1. is a citizen of the United Republic who has attained the age of twenty-one years and who can read and write in Kiswahili or English; and
2. is a member and a candidate proposed by a political party.
Such person possesses or has voluntarily acquired citizenship of any other country-
1. such person possesses or voluntarily acquires the citizenship of any other country;
2. in accordance with a law applicable in the United Republic it has been formally certified that such person is of unsound mind;
3. such person has been convicted by any court in the United Republic and sentenced to death or to a term of imprisonment exceeding six months for any offence however styled involving dishonesty;
4. within a period of five years preceding the date of a general election such person has been convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for an offence involving dishonesty or for contravening the law concerning ethics of public leaders;
5. without prejudice to a person’s right and freedom to hold his own views, to profess a religious faith of his choice, to associate with others and to participate in community work in accordance with the laws of the land, no person shall be qualified to be elected to the office of President of the United Republic if he is not a member of, and a candidate proposed by, a political party;
6. such person has an interest in any Government contract of any kind in respect of which special restrictions are prescribed by Act of Parliament and he has contravened such restrictions;
7. such person holds a senior office in the service of the Government of the United Republic, not being an office of which the President may or is required to appoint a Member of Parliament in accordance with this Constitution or a law enacted by Parliament; or
8. in accordance with a law enacted by Parliament dealing with offences concerning election of any kind such person has been disqualified from registering as a voter or from voting in a Parliamentary election.
A person shall not be competent to contest for election as a constituency Member of Parliament at any general election if he is at the same time contesting for election to the office of President, nor shall he be competent to contest for election as a Member of Parliament at any by-election if he is President.
Parliament may enact a law making provisions disqualifying a person from being elected Member of Parliament representing a constituency if such person holds an office whose functions involve the conduct of, or supervision over, the election of Members of Parliament or the registration of voters for the elections of Members of Parliament; save that such law shall not make provision disqualifying the Speaker from being elected Member of Parliament representing a constituency nor make provisions which cause a person elected Speaker to vacate that office of Speaker or his ordinary seat as Member of Parliament.
Parliament may enact a law for the purpose of making provisions for the disqualification of a person from being elected a Member of Parliament representing a constituency for any period, to be specified by Parliament (save that such period shall not exceed five years) if such person shall be convicted by a court for any type of offences, in connection with the election of Members of Parliament, as specified in that law.
For the purposes of giving opportunity to appeal according to law to any person who has been formally certified to be of unsound mind, or convicted and sentenced to death or imprisonment, or convicted for any offence specified under the law in terms of subarticle (5) of this Article, Parliament may enact law providing that such judgment being appealed against by that person shall have no effect for the purposes of the provisions of subarticle (2) or (5) of this Article until the expiration of the period to be specified in such legislation.
The following rules shall apply for the purposes of interpreting paragraphs (c), (d) and (e) of subarticle (2) of this Article, that is to say-
1. where a person has been awarded two or more prison sentences to run consecutively, such sentences shall be regarded to be separate provided that each of the sentences does not exceed six months; but if the period specified in any of the sentences exceeds six months, such sentences shall be regarded as one sentence;
2. if a person is sentenced to imprisonment where he could otherwise have been sentenced to a fine, or where the sentence of imprisonment is imposed for failure to pay a fine or ordered, such period of imprisonment shall not be taken into account.
In paragraph (f) of subarticle (2) of this Article “Government contract” means any contractual agreement in which one of the parties is the Govemment of the United Republic, or the Revolutionary Govemment of Zanzibar or any department of that Government or any officer of the Government who has taken part on behalf of the Government.
[Subarticles (9), (10), (11) and (12) are repealed by Act No. 4 of 1992 Art.19(d)]
For the purposes of interpretation of the qualifications for election contained in the following Articles whenever it is stated in this Constitution that the implementation of any matter requires a person who has the qualification for election, or a person who has not been disqualified from election, then unless the context requires otherwise, it shall be understood that the qualifications concerned or those which enable a person to be elected a Member representing a constituency as provided in subarticle (1) of this Article.

68. Oath of Members of Parliament

Every member of Parliament shall be required to take and subscribe before the National Assembly the oath of allegiance before commencing to take part in the business of the National Assembly save that he may take part in the election of Speaker before taking that oath.

69. Formal declaration by Members of Parliament concerning ethics of leaders

Every Member of Parliament shall be required before the expiration of thirty days since taking oath as Memberment of Parliament to submit to the Speaker two copies of a formal declaration that he has not lost the qualifications for election in terms of paragraph (d) of subarticle (2) of Article 67.
The formal declaration required to be submitted to the Speaker shall be made on a special form prescribed in accordance with a law enacted by Parliament.
The Speaker shall transmit to the Ethics Commissioner a copy of every formal declaration submitted to him in accordance with the provisions of this Article.
In this Article and in Articles 70 and 84 “the Ethics Commissioner” means the Commissioner appointed to head the Ethics Secretariat referred to in Article 132 of this Constitution.

70. Members to submit statement of property

Every Member of Parliament shall be required to submit to the Speaker two copies of a formal statement regarding his property and the property of his spouse. The statement shall be made on a special form prescribed by a law enacted by Parliament and shall be submitted from time to time as shall be directed by such law.
The Speaker shall transmit to the Ethics Commissioner, a copy of every formal statement submitted to him in accordance with the provisions of this Article.
Parliament may enact legislation for the purposes of making provisions designed for the protection of the statement of property submitted by a Member of Parliament in accordance with the provisions of this Article and to ensure that persons unauthorized or not concerned do not get the opportunity to see the statement of property or to know its contents.

71. Tenure of office of Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament shall cease to be Member of Parliament and shall vacate his seat in the National Assembly upon the occurrence of any of the following matters:
1. where anything happens which, had he not been a Member of Parliament, would have disqualified him from election, or would make him lose the qualifications for election, or would disqualify him from election or appointment in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution;
2. where such Member of Parliament is elected President;
3. where a Member of Parliament fails to attend three consecutive meetings of the National Assembly without the permission of the Speaker;
4. where it is established that he has contravened the provisions of the law concerning the ethics of public leaders;
5. where a Member of Parliament ceases to be a member of the party to which he belonged when he was elected or appointed to be a Member of Parliament;
6. where a Member of Parliament is elected or appointed Vice-President;
7. in the case of a Member of Parliament who is required to submit a formal statement of property in accordance with the provisions of Article 70, if he fails to make such formal statement in accordance with the provisions of that Article within the period prescribed for that purpose by a law enacted by Parliament,
but where a Member of Parliament does not cease to be a Member of Parliament on account of any of those matters mentioned and if he does not sooner resign or die, then he shall continue to hold office as Member of Parliament until the next general election.
Parliament may enact a law for the purpose of making provisions enabling a Member of Parliament to appeal according to law, against a decision which confirms that he is a person of unsound mind, or against a sentence of death or imprisonment or against conviction for an offence of the type referred to in the provisions of subarticle (5) of Article 67 of this Constitution, and that law may provide that the decision appealed against by the Member of Parliament shall have no effect in law until the expiration of the period prescribed in that law.

72. Cessation of employment of civil servants on contesting for election

Where any person holding office in the service of the Government which office is of the type mentioned in Article 67(2)(g) decides—

to contest for election to the office of President or any other office under this Constitution; or
to contest for leadership at any level in a political party contrary to the terms of employment, the employment of such person shall be considered to have ceased from the date of his becoming a candidate or of contesting for leadership in the political party.

73. Terms of service of Members of Parliament

All Members of Parliament of all categories shall hold office in accordance with this Constitution, and shall be paid a salary, allowances and other remuneration in accordance with a law enacted by Parliament.

Section 2. Electoral Commission

74. Electoral Commission

There shall be an Electoral Commission of the United Republic which shall consist of the following members to be appointed by the President:
1. a Chairman who shall be a Judge of the High Court or a Justice of the Court of Appeal, who shall be a person with qualifications to be an advocate and has held those qualifications for a period of not less than fifteen years;
2. a Vice-Chairman who shall be a person who holds, had held or is capable of holding an office of Judge of the High Court or a Justice of the Court of Appeal;
3. other members to be specified by a law enacted by Parliament.
The President shall appoint the Vice-Chairman of the Electoral Commission on the basis of the principle that where the Chairman hails from one part of the Union, the Vice-Chairman shall be a person who hails from the other part of the Union.
The following persons shall not be eligible for appointment as members of the Electoral Commission, that is to say –
1. a Minister or Deputy Minister;
2. a person holding any kind of office specified by a law enacted by Parliament prohibiting a persons holding such office to be appointed a member of Electoral Commission;
3. a Member of Parliament, a Councilor or other persons holding the kind of office specified by a law enacted by Parliament in terms of the provisions of paragraph (g) of subarticle (2) of Article 67 of this Constitution; and
4. a leader of any political party.
Subject to the other provisions of this Article, a member of the Electoral Commission shall cease to be a member whenever any of the following occurs –
1. upon the expiration of five years since his appointment; or
2. where anything happens which, had he not been a member of the Commission, would have made him ineligible for appointment to be a member of the Commission.
The President may remove a member of the Electoral Commission from office only for failing to discharge his functions either due to illness or any other reason or due to misconduct or loss of the qualifications for being a member.
The responsibilities of the Electoral Commission shall be:
1. to supervise and co-ordinate the registration of voters in Presidential and Parliamentary elections in the United Republic;
2. to supervise and co-ordinate the conduct of the Presidential and Parliamentary election;
3. to review the boundaries and demarcate the United Republic into various areas for the purposes of Parliamentary elections;
4. to supervise and co-ordinate the registration of voters and the conduct of the election of Councilors;
5. to perform any other functions in accordance with a law enacted by Parliament.
For the better carrying out of its functions, the Electoral Commission shall be an autonomous department, and its chief executive shall be the Director of Elections, who shall be appointed and shall discharge duties in accordance with a law enacted by Parliament.
Parliament may enact a law providing for the procedure for supervising the election of Members of Parliament representing constituencies.
The Electoral Commission may discharge its functions notwithstanding that there is a vacancy among its membership or that one of its members is absent, provided that every decision of the Commission must be supported by a majority of all the members of the Commission.
Parliament may enact a law providing for the procedure of appointing delegates to supervise elections of constituency Members of Parliament and, subject to the provisions of any law or the directions of the Electoral commission, the powers of the Electoral Commission to supervise the elections may be exercised by such delegates.
In discharging its functions in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution, the Electoral Commission shall not be obliged to comply with orders or directions of any person or any government department or the views of any political party.
No court shall have power to inquire into anything done by the Electoral Commission in the discharge of its functions in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.
In the discharge of its functions in accordance with this Constitution, the Electoral Commission of the United Republic shall, from time to time, consult with the Electoral Commission of Tanzania Zanzibar.
It is hereby prohibited for persons concerned with the conduct of elections to join any political party, save only that each of them shall have the right to vote as provided for under Article 5 of this Constitution.
For the purposes of subarticle (14) the persons concerned with the conduct of elections are:
1. the Chairman of the Electoral Commission;
2. the Vice-Chairman of the Electoral Commission;
3. all the members of the Electoral Commission;
4. the Director of Elections together with all other employees of the Electoral Commission; and
5. all supervisors of elections in all towns and districts.

Section 3. Constituencies

75. Constituencies

Subject to the other provisions of this Article, the United Republic shall be demarcated into constituencies of such number and in such manner as shall be determined by the Electoral Commission after obtaining the consent of the President.
Subject to any relevant law, the Electoral Commission shall have the power to demarcate the boundaries of constituencies after obtaining the consent of the President.
In demarcating the boundaries of constituencies, the Electoral Commission shall take due account of the availability of means of communication and also the geographical conditions of the area intended for demarcation into constituencies.
Subject to the provisions of this Constitution and any law concerning the demarcation of the country into constituencies, the Electoral Commission may, from time to time and at least after every ten years review the demarcation of the United Republic into constituencies and may alter the constituencies as a result of that review or as a result of a census conducted in the United Republic.
If after a review of the demarcation of the United Republic into constituencies alterations are made in the constituencies, or in the number of the Members of Parliament representing constituencies or in the number of constituencies or the number of Members of Parliament, then the resultant alteration in the number of Members of Parliament representing those constituencies shall take effect when Parliament is dissolved again following the occurrence of the alteration in the number of constituencies or in the number of Members of Parliament representing constituencies.
Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Article, no court shall have power to inquire into anything done by the Electoral Commission in its discharge of the function of demarcating the United Republic into constituencies.

Section 4. Election and Appointment of Members of Parliament

76. Elections in constituencies

After every dissolution of Parliament there shall be held an election of a Member of Parliament in every constituency.
Likewise there shall be held an election of a Member of Parliament in a constituency whenever the seat of any Member of Parliament representing that constituency falls vacant for any reason not connected with the dissolution of Parliament.
Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, it is hereby declared that where the date for dissolution of Parliament has been proclaimed or is known on account of the events specified in subarticle (3) of Article 90, then no such election shall take place during the whole period

77. Procedure for election Members of Parliament representing Constituencies

Members of Parliament representing constituencies shall be elected by the people in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution and also the provisions of a law enacted by Parliament pursuant to this Constitution to regulate the election of Members of Parliament representing constituencies.
Save where the Electoral Commission, in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution or of a law enacted by Parliament in that behalf directs otherwise, there shall be elected only one Member of Parliament in a constituency.
Candidates for election to a constituency shall be required to fulfil the following conditions:
1. they shall be proposed, one each, by a political party taking part in the election in that constituency; and
2. they shall have submitted their names to the Electoral Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down by a law enacted by Parliament or procedures prescribed by the Electoral Commission in accordance with law.

78. Procedure for election of women Members of Parliament

For the purposes of the election of women Members of Parliament mentioned in Article 66(1) (b), political parties which took part in the general election in accordance with the procedure laid down and obtained at least five percentum of the total valid voters for Parliamentary election, shall propose to the Electoral Commission the names of women on the basis of the proportion of votes obtained by each party in the Parliamentary election.
Notwithstanding the provisions of subarticle (1), the following votes shall be counted as valid votes for the unopposed Member of Parliament in the constituent –
1. where a political party has nominated a Presidential candidate, presidential votes cast in the constituency for a Presidential candidate from that political party;
2. where a political party has not nominated a presidential candidate, fifty one percentum of the votes of the total voters registered in the respective constituency.
The names of the persons proposed to the Electoral Commission in accordance with subarticle (1) shall be declared to be the results of the election after the Commission is satisfied that the relevant provisions of the Constitution and of other legislation have been complied with.
The list of names for women candidates submitted to the Electoral Commission by each political party for general election shall be the list to be applied by the Election Commission after consultation of the party concerned, for purpose of filling any vacancy of Members of Parliament of this category whenever during the life of Parliament.

79. Procedure for election of Members by House of Representatives

The House of Representatives shall prescribe the procedures which it shall follow for the purposes of the election of Members of Parliament mentioned in Article 66(1) (c) of this Constitution.

1. [Repealed by Act No. 4 of 1992 Section 27].

81. Procedure for proposing women candidates

Subject to the other provisions of this Constitution, the Electoral Commission may make provisions specifying the procedure to be followed by the political parties for the purposes of electing and proposing the names of the kind of Members of Parliament provided for under Article 66(1) (b).

[Repealed by Act No. 4 of 1992 section 29].

83. Determination of the validity of a person’s membership of Parliament

Every proceeding for the purposes of determining the question whether—
1. the election or appointment of any person to be Member of Parliament was valid or not; or
2. a Member of Parliament has ceased to be a Member of Parliament and his seat in the National Assembly is Act vacant, or not, shall, subject to the provisions of subarticle (2) of this Article, first be instituted and heard in the High Court of the United Republic.
Where the Electoral Commission, in the discharge of its functions in accordance with the provisions of Article 41(3) of this Constitution has declared any Member of Parliament to have been elected President, then no court or any other body shall inquire further into any question concerning the seat of that Member of Parliament being vacant.
Parliament may enact legislation providing for the following matters:
1. persons who may institute proceedings in the High Court seeking for determination of any question in accordance with the provisions of this Article;
2. the grounds and times for instituting such proceedings, procedure for instituting proceedings and conditions which have to be fulfilled in respect of every such proceeding; and
3. prescribing the powers of the High Court over such proceedings and specifying the procedure for the hearing of the matter itself.
There shall be a right of appeal to the Court of Appeal of Tanzania against a decision of the High Court in any matter which was heard in accordance with the provisions of this Article.