A member of Tanzania’s opposition party, Chadema, has been found dead after reportedly being abducted, beaten, and doused with acid, according to party leader Freeman Mbowe.
Ali Mohamed Kibao, a member of Chadema’s national secretariat, was forcibly taken at gunpoint on Friday while traveling by bus from Dar es Salaam to Tanga. Party officials believe security agents were responsible for the abduction. His body was discovered the following night in Dar es Salaam’s Ununio waterfront district.
This tragic incident follows a wave of detentions involving Chadema leaders, raising concerns over the shrinking democratic space in Tanzania.
Mbowe stated, “We cannot allow our people to continue disappearing or being killed like this,” he said. “The lives of Chadema leaders are currently at risk.”
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan expressed her sadness over Kibao’s death, promising a thorough investigation and asserting that such acts of cruelty will not be tolerated.
Kibao, aged 69, was a retired military intelligence officer who had previously worked with both opposition parties and the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) before joining Chadema in 2008.
Police are continuing their investigation, vowing to bring those responsible to justice. This killing has amplified fears of a return to repressive policies ahead of local and general elections.