Tanzania, May 17 -- Dar es Salaam. Stakeholders have criticised provisions of the Political Parties Act, 2024, arguing that they undermine political freedoms, while the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPPs) maintains that the law is necessary to safeguard democracy and prevent internal party abuses.

Much of the criticism focuses on the wide-ranging powers granted to the Registrar of Political Parties (RPPs), including authority to deregister parties, enter party meetings, and demand access to internal party documents.

Some of these concerns were raised during the drafting stage of the law, but Parliament, dominated by the ruling party, passed it despite objections from opposition legislators and democracy stakeholders, wh...