Often referred to as Mzee Rukhsa ("everything goes"), he pushed for liberalization of morals, beliefs, values (without breaking the law), and the economy.

[10] Agricultural production was low, and the general opinion was that Nyerere's Ujamaa socialist policies had failed economically.

[10] Such policies included the nationalization of major production, the forced re-villagization of the rural population into communal farms, and the banning of any opposition parties.

[10] Nyerere's supporters were opposed to involving the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in domestic economic reforms, believing it would cause instability and conflict with their socialist values.

[8] Also, Tanzania's relationship with the IMF had been strained since Nyerere's government failed to meet the loan conditions from a 1980 financial package agreement.

[9] Early in this political transition, many believed that Mwinyi was unlikely to deviate from Nyerere's policies since he was viewed as a loyal supporter of his predecessor.

[12] Mwinyi claimed that his negotiations with the IMF were on behalf of the people: for example, he agreed to the Fund's request that he decrease the number of public institutions, but only when doing so was necessary and could be done gradually.

[11] In addition to these developments, the World Bank provided structural adjustment credits for reforms in the agricultural, industrial, and financial sectors.

[13] In 1991, the first stages of the transition towards multipartyism began when Mwinyi appointed Chief Justice Francis Nyalali to lead a commission to gauge the amount of popular support for the current single-party system.

[11] Justice Nyalali pointed to 20 specific laws that were in need of revision in order to comply with the requirements of a multi-party system.

[14] Mwinyi supported their recommendation and the CCM Extraordinary National Party Conference ratified changes through constitutional amendments in February 1992.

[14] During the years of Julius Nyerere's presidency, corruption was viewed as a sort of oppression that undermined Tanzania's egalitarian values.

[15] In a 1989 interview when asked about his views regarding apartheid, Mwinyi advocated for tough, comprehensive sanctions to be carried out against South Africa.

[12] He also called for Western nations to assist "frontline states" in dealing with any destabilization attempts made by the South African government against those who oppose them.

[12] He called the Reagan administration's hesitance to enact tougher sanctions a "stumbling block", and expressed his hope that future U.S. leaders would take more action against South Africa's regime.