The Tanzanian government has suspended operations of Glory of Christ Church, owned by Kawe controversial MP Josephat Gwajima, just days after he condemned the alleged abduction of activists, including Kenyans.
Reports of the suspension of the church initially emerged on the evening of Monday, June 2, through a letter from the Tanzanian Registrar of Civil Societies.
In the letter, Gwajima was accused of delivering messages that could “endanger peace and national stability.” The church was also accused of overstepping its mandate as a religious institution and was reportedly violating its registered purpose by becoming a platform for political agitation.
The Tanzanian Registrar of Civil Societies further stated that the closure was carried out in line with Section 17(b) and Section 2 of the Societies Act Cap 337, while also citing amendments introduced through the Miscellaneous Amendments Act No. 3 of 2019.
On Monday evening, Gwajima took to Facebook to claim police had surrounded his church for unknown reasons. Around the same time, there were protests outside his church.
"Police have surrounded the church, and they came in very fast to listen to what was going on," Gwajima said.
"I'm not sure what is going on, but I can see three police vehicles outside. I would like to ask my followers and congregants to realise that we are surrounded by police. I don't know what they want to do."
Hours after, fresh reports emerged suggesting the Dar es Salaam Special Zone Police Force had arrested several individuals on allegations of defying a government order to shut down the church.
Dar es Salaam Special Zone Police Commander, Jumanne Muliro, confirmed the arrests on a radio station on Tuesday, saying authorities wanted to probe whether the individuals were aware of the government's directive or if they deliberately defied the order to cause unrest.
"While we were giving instructions on what should be done (regarding the closure of Bishop Gwajima's church) in line with legal directives, there were some people who were acting in ignorance," he said. So we had to take them in, and we are continuing to question them to determine whether they truly didn't understand what was being enforced or if they were simply refusing to comply in an attempt to stir up trouble.
Gwajima courted controversy when he spoke out on enforced disappearances of activists, as he hinted that Tanzania was no longer safe.
“I’ve documented over 85 cases of missing persons… including opposition leaders and human rights activists,” Gwanjima said, adding, “This makes people around the world think Tanzania’s hotels are unsafe, which is dangerous for our tourism sector."
