The July 29 departure of Samia Suluhu Hassan's deputy from the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), following the sacking of two party stalwarts from the cabinet, signals sweeping changes in Tanzania's leadership ranks ahead of the forthcoming elections.

Political heavyweight Abdulrahman Kinana resigned as the ruling party's vice chairperson, citing the need to rest due to "fatigue".

The CCM said in a statement late on Monday that President Samia, the party's leader, had accepted Kinana's request to step down "with a heavy heart".

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His departure comes just over a week after she fired two senior cabinet ministers who, along with Kinana, engineered her predecessor John Magufuli's tricky triumph over formidable opposition challenger Edward Lowassa in the 2015 presidential election.

Foreign Minister January Makamba and Information Minister Nape Nnauye were sacked on July 21 in a mini cabinet reshuffle that appeared to herald a season of intrigue as Samia prepares her bid to retain the presidency in next year's election.  

It is understood that Makamba and Nnauye were dropped after questions were raised about their loyalty to the president and her leadership philosophy ahead of Tanzania's civic elections later this year, which will set the pace for the 2025 general election. 

Kinana, who turns 73 in October, had been CCM's vice chairperson for mainland Tanzania and Samia's understudy in the party hierarchy since April 2022.

Inevitably, pundits have linked the trio's successive departures to a power play at the top of Samia's administration, which appears to be heating up ahead of the 2025 and 2030 presidential elections.

A well-established behind-the-scenes power broker in CCM's intricate political landscape, Kinana previously served as the party's secretary-general, but resigned in 2018 after clashing with then-President Magufuli.

This incident also coincided with Magufuli's sacking of Makamba and Nnauye from his cabinet, raising questions as to why all three masterminds of his 2015 presidential campaign were suddenly left out in the cold.

They were all reinstated to senior political positions after Samia took over the presidency following Magufuli's death in 2021.

Also read: Samia orders inquiry after top CCM official quits ahead of key polls

But according to a statement issued on Monday night by Amos Makala, the CCM's secretary for publicity and ideology, Kinana's decision to quit this time had nothing to do with the recent cabinet purge.

The statement quoted President Samia as saying that from the beginning he had asked for his term as her deputy to be short.

"It is true that when I asked you to help us out in the position of vice chair, I promised you that it would only be for a brief period as you requested. I truly preferred that you continue, but since you have insisted, and a promise is a debt, I must accept your resignation with a heavy heart," she said.

In 2025, Samia will seek votes to defend her incumbency for the first time, having been elevated from vice president to president by constitutional decree to fill the vacuum left by the late Magufuli.

Pundits believe there will be more changes in the party and government as the election approaches.

As vice chairperson, Kinana spearheaded CCM's maridhiano (reconciliation) talks with the main opposition party, Chadema, but these collapsed in mid-2023, with each party accusing the other of being the cause of the failure to reach an agreement. By BOB KARASHANI, The East Africa