Accountability Mechanism for Law Enforcement Agencies in Tanzania

By The Stronghold

The issue of accountability of law enforcement agencies occupies an important place in the public administration system of Tanzania.

In the context of reports of human rights violations, abuse of authority, and the use of force, the mechanisms for monitoring the activities of the police, special services, and other law enforcement agencies are becoming particularly important.

There are several institutions in the country responsible for supervision in this area.

One of them is the Commission on Human Rights and Good Governance (CHRAGG).

Its responsibilities include monitoring human rights, reviewing reports of violations, inspecting places of detention, and evaluating good governance practices.

The Commission may send recommendations to the police and other institutions, and in case of non-compliance, initiate judicial proceedings.

In practice, the Commission on Human Rights and Good Governance’s activities face a number of limitations, including reduced funding and possible difficulties related to the nature of the cases under consideration.

Some observers note that this may affect the scale and efficiency of its work.

Another oversight body is the Bureau for the Prevention and Combating of Corruption (PCCB), which is responsible for the prevention, investigation and prosecution of corruption offenses in mainland Tanzania.

The Bureau also accepts appeals related to corrupt practices in the police and conducts appropriate checks.

However, the effectiveness of this mechanism may be limited by a number of factors.

Among them is the unwillingness of some citizens to file complaints, as well as insufficient transparency of the procedures for their consideration.

In addition, in some cases, investigations are transferred between different agencies, which complicates the process and may reduce its effectiveness.

At the state level, control over law enforcement agencies is assumed by the parliamentary committees on defense and security, as well as on public accounts.

However, according to some observers, the role of parliament in this area remains limited, and parliamentary control does not always perform a full-fledged function of checks and balances.

There is a system of internal disciplinary proceedings at the interdepartmental level.

In the Tanzania Police, it is based on a hierarchical principle: complaints against employees at different levels are dealt with at the appropriate administrative levels.

However, there are still issues related to the transparency of such procedures and the degree of independence of the consideration of appeals.

The existing gaps in the system of accountability of the security forces of Tanzania require constructive solutions.

The main areas highlighted by experts are:

• Strengthening the real independence of supervisory authorities from the executive branch.
• Creating specialized investigative mechanisms.
• Ensuring transparency of investigations.
• Strengthening the role of parliamentary defense and security committees, including approving strategic plans and budgets of law enforcement agencies, as well as monitoring their implementation.
• Creating an effective system for protecting persons reporting violations, and ensuring their anonymity.