EVERY year Sokoine Memorial Lecture is held at Sokoine University of Agriculture in Morogoro. Sokoine Memorial Lecture is an occasion of commemorating commitment, hard work and the tireless efforts of the late Edward Moringe Sokoine, the former Prime Minister of Tanzania.
Forums to commemorate the great son of Tanzania, the late Sokoine, are held in many places in the country including other higher learning institutions and secondary schools. Sokoine was not very famous on the world stage during his era as he was locally.
This is because he did a lot of good things for the country people than he bothered for the external world. He left the international relation portfolio on his boss, the then President of Tanzania, Julius Kambarage Nyerere. Throughout the 1960s and until the 1980s, Nyerere represented Tanzania in global forums.
Sokoine was a noble leader and won respect from over 98 per cent of all Tanzania. He also won the respect of the then President, the late Mwalimu Nyerere. Sokoine’s name now appears in the names of schools, hospitals, streets and roads across all regions in Tanzania.
The leading agriculture university in East Africa, Sokoine University of Agriculture has been named after him too. Edward Sokoine represented a generation of leaders who rose during the post-independence era. He represented a unique breed of leadership that espoused a clear political vision, while at the same time grappled with the operational problems of development.
He was the epitome of a people’s leader, embodying the virtues of integrity, simplicity and dedication to the cause of the nation. He was a leader who combined effectiveness and respect for the popular will. He was incorruptible and dynamic, always striving to defend the interests of the Tanzanian people.
Twenty-nine years ago, on April 12, 1984, the nation lost a true son of our soil, the greatest patriot this country has ever produced, a man of great character and a leader dedicated to the development of his people and country. He died in a car accident at Dakawa, a few kilometres from Morogoro town, along the Morogoro Dodoma road.
To many Sokoine was a giant of their time, playing an instrumental role in the fight against graft, which also earned him many enemies. Edward Moringe Sokoine was born in 1938 and served as country Prime Minister from 13 February 1977 to 7 November 1980 and again from 24 February 1983 to 12 April 1984, when he died.
The sudden demise saddened the nation, including the president, the then Mwalimu Julius Nyerere. Sokoine was born in Monduli District in the Arusha Region in northern Tanzania. He began attending Government Primary School in Monduli at the age of 10 and joined Umbwe Government School in Kilimanjaro Region.
In 1961 he joined the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU), a political party that led Tanganyika to independence and one year later he went to the Federal Republic of Germany where he studied administration (1962– 1963). On his return to Tanganyika, Sokoine took a position as District Executive Officer of the Masai District (now Monduli, Longido and Simanjiro Districts).
In 1965 he was elected to the National Assembly for the Masai Constituency. In 1967 he became Deputy Minister of Communication, Transportation and Labour. In 1970 he was promoted to be the Minister of State.
In 1972 he became the Minister of Defence and National Service and in 1975 he was elected to the National Assembly again, this time for the Monduli constituency. Two years later, he became a member of the Central Committee of the ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) and in the same year (1977) he began his first term in office as Prime Minister until 1981. After a year-long break, he became Prime Minister again in 1983.
He served the office for only one year, when death struck him on April 12, 1984. In both terms Sokoine served as Prime Minister he succeeded Rashid Mfaume Kawawa, who is now also dead. Sokoine’s strength of character and ethical standard were distinguished and brought as much hope to some people as they did challenge others.
To Tanzanians belonging to the more impoverished economic groups from which he himself derived, his was a story of redemption. But doubts about his suitability to represent the elite classes were rife. In late 1970s Tanzanian economic growth slipped into the negative due to the impact of the Tanzania-Uganda war and failure of Ujamaa policies.
During this time the country experienced an acute shortage of basic necessities, with a few greedy individuals deliberately hoarding goods in order to further drive up their prices. Corruption was at its peak, with many ordinary Tanzanians living a miserable life having to bear the brunt of economic saboteurs.
To many Tanzanians who lived during this era, Sokoine represented hope. Sokoine became popular because of his operation against uhujumu uchumi (Economic Sabotage and Racketeers) which he spearheaded a few years before his untimely death. Sokoine also fought hard against ulanguzi (black marketeering and unfair price hiking).
In particular, he wanted to fight the economic inequality of a few individuals who were bent on profiteering from the hardship that had been created by the deliberate scarcity of essential goods such as sugar, soap, rice, building materials and clothing.
He sought to provide basic goods and services to more citizens at more affordable prices than they were being offered by those who were otherwise accumulating goods and selling them for inflated prices. Father of the Nation Mwalimu Nyerere once described Sokoine as a person who knew how to use his time in office to address matters of national interest.
Since Sokoine’s death, corruption has taken its toll among various parties in the community including leaders leaving the poor people facing economic difficulties. This is what Sokoine fought against. He fought for the marginalised and helped to establish the Economic Saboteurs Act to this end. Like Nyerere, the late Sokoine sacrificed much of his life for the betterment of the country.
His down to earth character, modest lifestyle and integrity contribute to his being one Tanzania political figure whose reputation was unmatched on the national level. There is no doubt that his death overshadowed the hopes and dreams of many Tanzanians.
But his legacy will be there to stay. Since he passed away in 1984, Sokoine’s ideas have been sorely missed by those engaged in the fight against corruption and economic inequality in Tanzania. He was not a hypocrite and was always firm on issues he believed in. Sokoine will be remembered as an outstanding leader.
To a great extent Sokoine succeeded in his operations but died at the time that Tanzanians needed him the most. He will always be remembered by those who appreciated his efforts, fight for equality and justice for all the Tanzanians regardless of their ethnicity or economic well-being. Moreover, he will be remembered more by the poor who saw him as their saviour. Rest in peace Edward Sokoine.
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