Saturday, April 30, 2016

Majaliwa takes advice on probing UK bank

KATARE MBASHIRU in Dodoma
PRIME Minister, Mr Kassim Majaliwa, said yesterday the government was working on Kigoma Urban MP (ACT-Wazalendo) Zitto Kabwe’s advice that it should launch an investigation into the bribery scandal with the UK bank.

“We have received an advice from Mr Kabwe to probe the UK based Standard ICBC and Stanbic Tanzania over USD 6 mi l - lion (about 12bn/-) bribery scandal in a treasury bond deal sealed on March 8, 2013 which we are working on,” Mr Majaliwa said.
Speaking in Dodoma yesterday, the PM said the government was working on the matter and that immediately after proper assessment and thorough investigations by security agencies, the matter would be made public.
On Thursday evening, Mr Kabwe asked Speaker of the National Assembly, Mr Job Ndugai, to form a parliamentary selectcommittee to probe into the scandal with a UK bank. The outspoken MP demanded that the committee should launch investigation into the UK based Standard ICBC and Stanbic Tanzania to get the truth on the matter.
Reports say the alleged hefty bribe facilitated the purchase of USD 600 million (Sh1.2 trillion) treasury bonds in 2013 by the UKbased Standard Bank.
Debating budget estimates for the Ministry of State in the President’s Office (Good Governance and Public Service Management), Mr Kabwe argued that on March 8, 2013, the government took an external loan facility of USD 600 million (about 1.2tri/-) by the help of UK’s Standard Bank, now known as Standard Bank ICIC plc. He added that if the government implemented the contract, it would have started servicing the loan in March 2016.
According to the Kigoma Urban legislator, the loan was marred by serious corruption allegations that have landed some officials in court. However, the prime minister yesterday said that there was no cause for alarm over the matter, insisting that the issue was under close watch by government agencies.
“As the leader of government business in the House, I have received the advice from Mr Zitto and we are working on it and after proper analysis by government machineries, we will be in a position to reveal findings,’’ insisted Mr Majaliwa.
In the House, Mr Kabwe presented a letter of Tanzanians living in the Diaspora, who wrote to the Prevention and Combatting of Corruption Bureau (PCCB), demanding that the government launch investigations into the saga.
However, he pointed out that PCCB used reports by UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO), which did not investigate the UK’s Standard Bank. “Today PCCB is being helped and advised by experts from the UK while the bank implicated in this scam is from that country,’’ he noted, adding that the corruption watchdog was afraid to charge the UK based bank because those giving advice on the matter were from the UK.
To know the truth to justify appropriate legal steps instituted against the offenders, the Parliament ought to repeal section 120(2) to form an independent parliamentary select-committee to investigate into the multi-million scam.

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