Adeladius Makwega – MBAGALA
It was the morning of February 27, 2026. The Regional Commissioner of Mara Region, Tanzania, Colonel Evans Alfred Mtambi, arrived in Tarime District accompanied by the Regional Security and Defense Committee. Upon arrival, they first held a closed-door meeting.
At that time, the weather in Tarime Town was 24°C, with 60% humidity, a 92% chance of rain, and wind blowing at 3 km per hour.
The closed-door meeting brought together two security committees—the Regional Committee and the Tarime District Committee. It lasted 45 minutes, after which the Regional Commissioner began his district tour.
Mwanakwetu was the only journalist present at that time. He approached a white Toyota Land Cruiser parked beside the Legal Officer from the Office of the Mara Regional Commissioner and requested to board the vehicle, which was later identified as belonging to the PCCB Regional Commander for Mara Region.
“Just get in. We are all here for the Regional Commissioner’s tour. Get in quickly so we can start the visit…”
These words were spoken by a young, fair-skinned driver of the PCCB Regional Commander’s vehicle. This impressed Mwanakwetu, who thought to himself that PCCB had fulfilled its duty of promoting good governance.
Indeed, the tour was long. For the most part, Colonel Mtambi visited and inspected the Nyamongo Mine, especially inside the mine itself. There was an area that had been expanded beyond its original boundary, where several residents had been living. Some had relocated after receiving compensation, while others refused to move, disputing the valuation of their compensation. Several cases had been taken to court.
Colonel Mtambi stated:
“We recognize that you are our fellow Tanzanians. However, this investment at Nyamongo Mine involves our fellow Tanzanians and our government. The revenue generated here is used for our development. Therefore, it is important to avoid conflicts like these. For our country to develop, we must not create obstacles for one another. I direct the Regional Legal Officer to ensure that these cases are given priority certificates so they can be heard quickly and concluded, allowing work at the mine to continue.”
On the other hand, residents who rejected the compensation said that although they had signed various valuation forms, the payments assessed were too low. They argued that land costs in the Nyamongo area are very high, which was the root cause of the disputes.
The journey through the settlement of residents who refused to relocate was very long. Mwanakwetu observed several young children living in poor and dirty conditions, far from social services and in hazardous areas. The children showed no fear, even in the presence of heavily armed security officers accompanying the Regional Commissioner that day.
Earlier, the tour had begun at a secondary school within the Tarime District Council. There, the Regional Commissioner entered the school hall, which was filled with people, and chaired a meeting focused on resolving a dispute over the distribution of royalties and a one-percent village allocation. Msege Village had objected to 40% of its funds—nearly 400 million Tanzanian shillings—being directed to Genkuru Village. Msege Village demanded that its money be transferred directly into its own account rather than being used for development projects.
The Chairperson of Genkuru Village, Mr. Elias Mwela, opposed transferring the funds to another account. This disagreement caused tensions from the village level to the ward, within the ruling party CCM, at the District Council level, and up to the District Commissioner of Tarime. As a result, the Mara Regional Commissioner intervened on February 27, 2026, after all other attempts to resolve the issue had failed. The matter was ultimately handed to Colonel Mtambi.
In the end, the Chairperson of Genkuru Village was found to be correct. Colonel Mtambi then issued the following directives to the two villages, the ward authorities, the Tarime District Council, the Executive Director, the District Commissioner, and the Regional Administrative Secretary:
“The 60–40 royalty distribution formula must be observed. The District Council should ensure that villages initiating projects implement projects proportional to their allocation percentage.Villages must propose projects, and the Tarime District Council will approve them. The funds should remain in the account where they were initially deposited and be used to finance the identified projects.The Tarime District Council must supervise implementation closely, professionally, and transparently. All concerned villages must hold proper meetings and inform citizens about the projects and their value. The Regional Administrative Secretary must conduct audits of the projects and royalty funds, ensuring that project value matches the funds spent.The District Commissioner of Tarime must regularly convene meetings on mining revenues allocated to villages and address their challenges while listening to all parties alongside Council experts.All stakeholders, especially village leaders under the ward councilor, must cooperate closely during project implementation.”
Dear reader, these directives were issued only after both sides had presented their arguments. Initially, our reporter thought that the Chairperson of Genkuru Village might be detained that day. However, it later became clear that he was entirely correct. He demonstrated patience, composure, and careful reasoning, responding to each point raised without losing hope until the Regional Commissioner made his final decision and issued his nine directives.
After leaving the hall, Colonel Mtambi proceeded to inspect the houses located within the mining area where some residents had refused compensation and relocation.
The tour concluded around 7:00 p.m. Mwanakwetu once again boarded the PCCB Regional Commander’s vehicle. Inside were the Regional Fire and Rescue Chief, the Regional Prisons Chief, the Regional Immigration Chief, the Regional Legal Officer, Mwanakwetu and the PCCB Regional Commander. They all returned to Musoma Town, and upon arriving home, Mwanakwetu wrote this article.
What does Mwanakwetu say today?
Mwanakwetu commends the Mara Regional Commissioner for carefully listening to the dispute, resolving it, and issuing the nine directives.
He also highly praises the Chairperson of Genkuru Village, Elias Mwela, for being patient, composed, and methodical in responding to every argument before the regional leadership during what initially appeared to be a very difficult meeting—but ultimately ended well.
Mwanakwetu believes that Elias Mwela, Chairperson of Genkuru Village, will go far.
Mwanakwetu, are you there. Remember:
“Chairperson of Genkuru Village: A Role Model.”
Have a good day.
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