Tanzania: Muhongo to Invest Sh90 Million Bunge Car Loan in Education Sector

Musoma — The newly appointed minister for Energy and Minerals, Prof Sospeter Muhongo, said he will invest the Sh100 million he was given by Parliament as a loan to purchase a vehicle in the education sector in his constituency.

He told The Citizen on telephone that his decision was prompted by the fact that there was an urgent need to improve the learning environment in his constituency and the nation at large.

He said the office of Parliament had given him Sh 90 million to purchase a new car but he decided to add Sh10 million to fund education for his constituents.

The MP for Musoma Rural said he would want to see the money helping to improve the infrastructure of schools including construction of classrooms, teachers' houses, libraries, laboratories, buying teaching materials, and purchase of desks as well as support students from poor families.

Following the discovery, President Magufuli suspended TRA Commissioner General Rished Bade and his deputy Lusekelo Mwaseba along four other top officials pending investigations.

Yesterday, minister Mbarawa told a press conference that scam linked to ICDs forced TPA to conduct thorough investigations into the privately-run facilities and CFS to check if wharfage charges were being paid by custom agents. "Our latest investigations discovered a total of 11,884 containers and 2,019 vehicles were released without their due taxes being collected," said the minister.

Mr Mbarawa's tour at the port comes just two days after he was sworn in.

He said the new discoveries were made at seven ICDs which he named as MOFED, DICD, JEFAG, AZAM, PMM, AMI, and TRH which were to pay Sh47.7 billion.According to the minister, the scam did not end there. He said investigations also uncovered a number of vehicles in the CFS for which taxes amounting to Sh 1 billion had not been paid. He named the clearing agents involved in the alleged scam as TALL, CHICASA, FARION, SILVER, MASS and HESU.

However, Prof Mbarawa pointed out that the scandal did not involve either of the ICDs or CFS mentioned but 15 TPA workers who were working in collaboration with 243 custom agents who were earlier advertised in the media. He named the TPA workers in police custody as Mr John Elisante, Ms Leticia Masaro, and Ms Christina Temu, Ms Merina Chawala, Mr Adnan Ally, Mr Masoud Seleman and Ms Benadeta Sangawe.

Those at large include Ms Happygod Naftal, Mr Nathan Edward, Mr Aron Lusingu, Mr Amani Kazumari, Mr John Mushi, Mr Valentine Sangawe, Ms Bonasweet Kimaina and Ms Zainab Bwijo.

In another development Prof Mbarawa ordered the custom agents involved in the allegations to submit their evidence that showed whether they had paid the due taxes.

Further, he issued seven days' notice wanting them to pay the taxes and failure to do so they would be arrested on conditions they paid the taxes while other lawful actions were taken against them. "Failure to comply with the conditions we will revoke their licences and ban them from doing any business in our ports," he said.

He stressed that the government would not tolerate any TPA workers irrespective of their positions causing the authority to lose revenues.

Further he said, the government would revoke licences of all custom agents who would continue to collaborate with TPA workers to release goods without paying the due taxes.

At the beginning of the month the PM uncovered 2,431 containers released at the port without having their due taxes paid and kept at four AZAM ICDs, DICD, JEFAG and PMM worth Sh1.9 billion.

Following the scandal the PM suspended 12 TPA workers connected in the scam who were later arrested by the police for further legal action.

The culprits were given a seven day notice to pay the money but only seven out of 55 agents paid a total of Sh80 milion within the period.

After the seven day notice ended, TPA banned those who had not paid the taxes from working at the port and further initiated their arrest whereby until Monday this week a total of 15 agents had been arrested and agreed to paid a total of Sh820 million.

Due to the efforts a total of Sh900 million had been paid by the beginning of this week.

The minister said that they were still going on with the exercise of arresting those who were yet to finalise payments on the unpaid for containers and the target was to en sure all those who were yet to do so were arrested and forced to pay the money by January 10, next year.