A female MP in Tanzania caused drama in parliament when she stood to contribute on a motion to have all male circumcised as a way of curbing the spread of HIV/AIDS in the country.
Jackline Ngonyani, speaking candidly in polished swahili, caused laughter when she brought the topic closer to his male counterparts by suggesting to the Speaker of the House to conduct checks to determine whether or not the male MPs had faced the knife.
“…mheshimiwa spika mimi ninashauri kwamba tuanze na wabunge wote humu ndani ambao itabainika kuwa hawajafanya hiyo dohara basi wafanyiwe dohara mara moja,” she said amidst mixed reactions from her colleagues.
Her sentiments were echoed by MP Joseph Selasini who argued that it was important for the country to adopt a compulsory male circumcision program to reduce the escalating rates of HIV infections.
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The good lady wants the Tanzanian parliament to adopt compulsory male circumcision in the House…BLOODY affair @WehliyeMohamed pic.twitter.com/34GVPIVFNd
— Ahmednasir Abdullahi SC (@ahmednasirlaw) February 8, 2019
The World Health Organisation reports indicates that circumcision reduces the risk of heterosexual men contracting HIV by around 60%.
In Tanzania, HIV is considered one of the major health threats to the public and the government is keen to ensure they curb the epidemic before it gets out of control.
Several other African countries have adopted the compulsory male circumcision program which involves the removing of foreskin from the penis.
In Kenya, some top politicians voluntarily submitted to the circumcision procedure in 2008 as a way of encouraging other men across the country to embrace the program.
Geita MP Joseph Kasheku allied to Chama Cha Mapinduzi, however, opposed the proposal describing it as uncouth and invasive.