Dar es Salaam. Boniface Jacob, Chairman of Chadema Coast Region, has described his unique journey towards winning the position while in prison, after being arrested and accused of online crimes.
Through a special interview with Mwananchi, Jacob, popularly known as Boni Yai, has recounted the challenges and difficult decisions he made to allow Chadema in the Coastal Region to continue with the elections, which he initially wanted to be postponed until the fate of his bond was found.
Finally, while in Segerea prison, he was informed by his fellow prisoners about his victory, which he won by 77 percent.
Boni Yai has also made clear his strategies to strengthen Chadema, especially in areas with security challenges and low political awareness within the Coastal Region, which includes the Coastal and Dar es Salaam regions.
Boni Yai was arrested on September 18, this year at the Golden Folk restaurant in Sinza Makaburini, Dar es Salaam.
He has said that his arrest had occasional fights between him and the police, and it caused trouble for passers-by and customers who were getting service at the restaurant.
On the evening of September 19, he was brought to the dock at the Kisutu Resident Magistrate's Court, Dar es Salaam and was charged with two charges which he denied and sent to Segerea Prison due to his bail being denied by the police for his so-called safety.
He entered the prison there as an ordinary member of Chadema and when he was released on October 7, 2024, he already had the hat of the chairman of the Coast Region which also gives him the message of the Central Committee of the party.
He wants the election to be postponed
In an interview he did with the editors and writers of Mwananchi held in Dar es Salaam, Boni Yai says kdue to the proceedings of his case not being understood, he previously sent his lawyers asking the party to postpone the election that was originally scheduled for September 28, to wait for the fate of his dignity.
He says the party agreed with him and postponed it, but after seeing that his bail was delayed and the advice he received from the prisoner, he decided otherwise.
“And in the prison, the prisoners advised me to ask the party to continue with the election process, otherwise I would not have come out.
“The minds of the people in prison, they told me if I continue with the position that the election should not take place, I will spend a long time in prison, instead they advised me to let the process continue, regardless of whether I win or not,” says Boni Yai.
After that action, he says when they went to court and his bond hit a rock, he immediately told his lawyers to contact the party again to allow the election to take place, and it was held and he emerged victorious.
At the election, Boni Yai appointed Herny Kileo (Chairman of Chadema Kinondoni Region) and Ernest Mgawe (Chairman of Chadema Kibamba Region) to manage his campaign activities.
Boni Yai says despite having hope to come out on top due to the preparations he made, on election day Saturday October 5, he was worried because he was in prison.
“When the election was held, I did not get the results on time, I expected to know in the afternoon, but I got worried because the prison procedures start at nine in the afternoon and we have to sleep.
“Until that time I went to sleep, I had no information about the results, and until 3 o'clock in the night when I went to sleep, I did not understand anything,” he continues to narrate.
The next day (Sunday), in the morning, Boni Yai says he went to watch the television, but he did not manage to see the headlines of the newspapers to find out if he had won the election because the time to read the newspapers was over.
However, he says there are people (prisoners and prisoners) who followed him while he was cheering and called him “chairman, chairman”, and he asked himself, 'where did they get the information or how did they know?'
“They lifted me up, I ask them how many votes have I won?” They didn't know more than to say that I had won by 77 percent. They told me that I and my whole team had won, they congratulated me a lot,” says Boni Yai.
In the election held on October 5, Boni Yai got 60 votes, equal to 77 percent, against Gervas Lyenda who got 17 votes, equal to 23 percent.
He penetrated the election
In his explanation, Boni Yai, says he was not worried about winning due to his preparation starting from the process of taking and returning the form.
“My numbers (voters) were good since I returned the form, they supported me with a large percentage, another thing on the coast for a long time they lacked someone to wake them up who really stands up, you say Chadema has stood up.
“But the other thing, I knew the problem of the Coastal people that they wanted a vibrant leadership, not a paralyzed one,” said Boni Yai.
For four years, the Coastal Region has been under Baraka Mwago as acting chairman since November 19, 2019 when the former Prime Minister, Frederick Sumaye, who was the chairman of the region before returning to CCM, lost the election.
Boni Yai says another thing that carried him and emerged prominently in the process, is his history of successful struggles.
“The candidate was inside (prisoner) but his qualifications were outside. Well, my history carried me, Boniface is a fighter, a leader, I have been the main committee at different times. On the day of returning the form, I told them how I wanted the Coastal Region to be, so I was not surprised to be told that I had won, even though I received news while I was on the bench in prison,” he said while praising the great improvements made, including the issue of cleanliness and the presence of television that enables them to monitor various events in the morning.
Answering the question asked him, how his movements on the internet have been able to affect his lifestyle, the former mayor of Ubungo, said the movement to defend human rights using social media platforms, is not an easy thing because he deals with people directly, so the style of life must change.
“There is nothing that does not have an impact, first of all my lifestyle has changed due to these movements to be in the front line to fight for human rights. My defense system has changed, now there are some places I can't visit.
“Also, I can't stay in bars or places of enjoyment until dawn like it was in the past, before the incidents of people getting lost and kidnapped didn't return. “I used to be able to stay up until morning, but now I can't, it's not safe for me,” he says.
Another thing, Boni Yai said there are well-intentioned people, men and women, who can look to him for help, but in the life of activism, it is not easy for him to meet everyone.
“I have changed my eating system, I cannot eat everywhere or walk everywhere, even during the day, because I seem to be a threat to people who do inappropriate actions in society,” he says.
Apart from that, he says that the environment of his businesses has also changed, he has now left the responsibility of managing these activities to people due to the fact that he has experienced occasional disturbances due to these movements.
“I have also suffered losses, every three months I have to buy a new phone because if I am arrested I leave it to the police. Right now I have four phones that are being held by the Police Force. Also, I pay the lawyers who manage my cases, it's not free, this is also a loss,” he says.
When he was asked about his strategies in the new post, especially in the districts of Mkurunga, Rufiji, Bagamoyo and Kibiti where Chadema seems weak, despite acknowledging the issue in general, he said that in Bagamoyo, Chalinze, Mafia, Kibaha Urban and Rural areas there is a great awakening as it is in the states of Dar es Salaam.
He said the biggest problem of the Coastal Region is the poor economic situation and the lack of citizenship education that will make the people believe that there are alternative parties that will talk about the challenges they face.
“The operations that took place in Kibiti, Rufiji and Mkuranga have scared people into doing political activities, something that scared the people of those areas,” he said.
Boni Yai said that in order to strengthen the party, in those areas he will ensure that he provides citizenship education to the citizens of Kibiti, Mkuranga and Rufiji so that they can believe in themselves and increase their confidence to participate in political activities because the law allows it.
“In my leadership, I will make sure that the citizens return to a normal life, I will hold many meetings and sessions to give them confidence and morale.
“There are people who have the ability to run for leadership in those areas, but they fear for their safety, that if they are seen to oppose CCM, they will be in a difficult situation,” says Boni Yai.
Apart from that, he will ensure that senior leaders of the party, including the Chairman of Chadema, Freeman Mbowe, Vice Chairman-Bara, Tundu Lissu and members of the central committee go to those areas to hold public meetings regularly instead of ending up in Dar es Salaam Region.
Don't miss the second part of this interview tomorrow explaining Chadema's 'surprise' in 2025 regarding the presidential candidate.
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