A senior official of Tanzania’s main opposition party, Chadema, has been arrested as tensions mount ahead of the country’s general election scheduled for 29 October. The detention has deepened concerns over political repression under President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s administration.
Chadema’s deputy chairperson John Heche was taken into custody on Wednesday while attempting to attend the treason trial of the party’s leader, Tundu Lissu. The party alleges that authorities are deliberately targeting its senior figures to weaken the opposition before the vote.
In a statement released shortly after Heche’s arrest, Chadema claimed the government had launched a plan to “arrest senior party leaders and detain them until after the elections.”
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Police have not commented on the arrest, which marks Heche’s second detention in less than a week. On Saturday, he was briefly held while attempting to cross into Kenya, reportedly to attend the funeral of former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
The Tanzanian immigration department later said Heche had tried to illegally cross the border, a claim the opposition party dismissed as “fabricated.” Chadema added that Heche was being transported more than 1,300 kilometres (820 miles) north to Tarime, his home district, in what it called a “politically motivated transfer.”
Heche’s detention comes amid an ongoing outcry over the disappearance of former Tanzanian ambassador and government critic Humphrey Polepole, who was allegedly abducted from his home in Dar es Salaam on 6 October. His family reported finding blood stains and a broken door at his residence. Authorities have yet to issue an official statement on his whereabouts.
Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have warned of increasing intimidation, detentions, and restrictions on opposition voices ahead of the polls.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan, representing the long-ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, is seeking a second term. Though initially praised for loosening her predecessor John Magufuli’s tight grip on power.
Chadema has been banned from contesting in the upcoming election, while its leader, Tundu Lissu, remains detained on treason charges dating back to April. Meanwhile, Luhaga Mpina, the presidential candidate for ACT-Wazalendo, the country’s second-largest opposition party, has been disqualified, leaving President Samia to face only minor contenders.