President Jakaya Kikwete had sacked minister for Lands, Housing and
Human Settlements Development Prof Anna Tibaijuka over the Tegeta escrow
account scandal
By The Citizen Reporter
In Summary
Dar es Salaam. Donors have said they were still
waiting for solid government response on Tegeta escrow account
investigations, their spokesperson said on Tuesday.
“DPs (development partners) trust that Tanzania’s
accountability systems will handle the case thoroughly and are looking
forward to a solid response to the findings from the government,” said
the DPs chairperson, Finnish ambassador Sinikka Antila.
In May, this year, 12 donor countries and
multilateral bodies, including the World Bank, withdrew $558 million
(nearly Sh1 trillion) budget support for 2014/2015 over the Tegeta
escrow scandal.
And the US government recently announced that it
had put on hold the signing of the Millennium Challenge Corporation
(MCC) compact with Tanzania pending the government’s action on the
Tegeta escrow scandal. The value in the MCC facility was pegged at
around $700 million in five years from 2015.
The Finnish envoy made the statement shortly after
President Jakaya Kikwete had sacked minister for Lands, Housing and
Human Settlements Development Prof Anna Tibaijuka over the Tegeta escrow
account scandal. The President announced the decision on Monday when
delivering his verdict on the scandal in a televised address to the
nation via a gathering attended by Dar es Salaam elders.
President Kikwete also said he had formed a
special team to probe minister for Energy and Minerals Sospeter Muhongo
over his role in the controversial matter.
He directed other public service disciplinary
provisions be pursued in response to calls to drop the Energy Permanent
Secretary Mr Eliakim Maswi, whose quick suspension to pave way for
investigations followed on Tuesday night in a statement from the office
of the Chief Secretary Mr Ombeni Sefue.
During the address, Mr Kikwete’s take on the
scandal largely left many questions unanswered in relation to the
parliamentary recommendations that suggested stern steps against all
those it viewed as culpable in the scandal involving the fraudulent
withdrawal of Sh306 billion from the central bank. The money was equally
controversially shared among top public figures, including those in
government and businessmen.
Many of the recommendations by Parliament were
apparently left hanging and the President’s speech, despite the dropping
of Prof Tibaijuka and the suspension of Mr Maswi, has since attracted
widespread criticism across the nation.
The President’s critics say his action fell short
of implementing the Parliament resolutions in their entirety and that he
had sought to defend the same escrow scandal culprits.
The Parliament had recommended that two ministers,
energy and minerals permanent secretary Mr Eliakim Maswi, Attorney
General Judge Francis Werema should be sacked while the Tanesco board of
directors should be dissolved over the IPTL scandal. Mr Werema has
since resigned as AG.
On Tuesday, Ms Antila said the DPs welcomed the
President’s statement acknowledging the resolutions approved by
Parliament and confirming some action and further investigations.“While
still assessing the situation, DPs maintain dialogue with the ministry
of Finance and any decisions on further disbursements will be
communicated to the minister,” she said, on inquiry if the donors would
consider releasing the withheld funds in the wake of the response by the
President
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