PM: State to honour all pledges by Magufuli

CHRISTOPHER MAJALIWA in Dodoma

THE government is all out to ensure that pledges contained in the President John Magufuli’s inaugural speech to parliament and those made during election campaigns are fully implemented.

The Prime Minister, Mr Kassim Majaliwa, told the National Assembly here that all ministries and public agencies have already mapped out strategies that will guide smooth implementation of such plans.

“All ministries and departments have gone through President Magufuli’s speech and came up with both short term and long term measures to implement the pledges,” he noted. He added: “As you can all see we have already started working on various issues and were are firm to ensure that problems facing majority Tanzanians are addressed.”

The Premier asked MPs to make constructive contributions to the speech, pledging that their views would be considered and worked upon. “I just want to assure you that we are going to incorporate your contributions in our plans. Please help us with positive and constructive contributions,” asserted the Premier.

The Leader of Government Business in the House pointed out that President Magufuli’s speech gives a clear picture of what the Fifth Phase Government was going to do to improve the livelihood of all Tanzanians.

In his speech to inaugurate the Eleventh Parliament in November last year, Dr Magufuli declared that his administration would work tirelessly to address challenges facing majority Tanzanians by ensuring that natural resources the country is endowed with, benefit all.

Among priorities outlined by President Magufuli included the war against red tape bureaucracy, corruption, embezzlement of public funds and control against excessive expenditure at all levels, negligence and laxity on part of public servants and war against drug trafficking.

His target includes job creation, enhanced tax collection, stable power supply, construction of road and railway infrastructures, and revival and establishment of industries.

A number of MPs who debated the speech here called on the government, among others, to revisit agricultural input voucher scheme, intensify war against narcotic drugs and immediately step in to get rid of nuisance taxes imposed on small scale farmers.

Mbozi MP (Chadema) Pascal Haonga pushed for immediate review of national agricultural input voucher scheme, pointing out that the current system was marred with corruption making the majority of the farmers miss out on the opportunity.

‘’Due to the fact that agriculture significantly contributes to the national income, the government is supposed to give attention to farmers by subsidising them and rescinding nuisance taxes imposed on them,’’ he said.

Mr Sixtus Mapunda (Mbinga Urban- CCM) charged that despite the fact that most Tanzanians earned their living through agriculture, the sector remained largely unconsidered.

He advised the government to mull establishing agriculture research centres, insisting that it was hard to transform the sector without scientific researches. Mr Seleman Saddiq (Mvomero-CCM) noted that to make agricultural activities lucrative, land conflicts involving pastoralists and growers, currently rocking various parts of the country, must be immediately solved.

He called on relevant ministries -- Regional Administration and Local Government; Home Affairs; Lands, Housing and Human Settlements Development and that of Tourism and Natural Resources to sit together and chart out how to curb land conflicts.

“These conflicts, despite claiming lives, make Tanzanians fail to produce freely. These ministries should see how to step in and contain such conflicts,” he appealed.

He also showered praise on Dr Magufuli’s administration, saying many people have confidence and trust on him. Mr Saddiq implored the government to create a friendly environment for doing business for the private sector by revisiting current policies, which he said were uncongenial.

On his part, Temeke MP (CUF), Mr Abdallah Mtolea, pointed out that though President Magufuli hit the ground running, the war against narcotic drugs needed to be intensified.

He said that the government had not taken serious measures to deal with the problem and current trend on streets shows that drug trafficking and use were on the increase.