TICTS: The inside story
- Thread starter TAIKUBWA
- Start date
Bubu Msemaovyo
JF-Expert Member
- May 9, 2007
- 3,833
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Mwalimu J.K. Nyerere siku anaondoka kwenda St. Thomas, siku kadhaa baadaye Mh. Mkapa alikuwa akituupdate maneno aliyozungumza Mwalimu, nakumbuka yalikuwa mengi sana lakini hili la ".....najua ugonjwa huu sitapona, nitakufa lakini Watanzania mtanikumbuka...." Kwa kweli tunamkumbuka sana kwani alijua nchi hii kuna WALAFI na anaondoka huku wakiwa katika harakati za kutafuna.
LazyDog
JF-Expert Member
- Apr 10, 2008
- 2,473
- 189
Unapo quote kauli ya mtu ungali huna hakika na kilichosemwa, ni vyema kukiri.
Kwenye mistari miekundu, mwandishi ame-misquote statement ya Spika. Huu ni uzembe mkubwa sana.
Shame on you MWANANCHI!
Hizo hansards huwa zinawekwa kwenye Web baada ya kipindi gani toka kikao cha Bunge kufanyika?
.
BAK
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 11, 2007
- 124,789
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Date::7/9/2008
Spika amkingia kifua Mgonja kuhusu barua toka Ikulu
Na Muhibu Said, Dodoma
Mwananchi
WAKATI baadhi ya wananchi, wakihoji juu ya uhalali wa Katibu Mkuu wa Wizara ya Fedha, Gray Mgonja, kuingilia kazi zisizomhusu kwa kusaini barua ya Ikulu, Spika wa Bunge, Samuel Sitta amejitokeza na kumtetea.
Akizungumza na mwandishi wa gazeti hili jana mjini hapa, Spika Sitta alisema Mgonja, ambaye pia ni Katibu Mkuu wa Hazina, hakuvamia kazi za Ikulu, kama inavyohojiwa na watu hao.
Spika Sitta alitoa kauli hiyo alipotakiwa kufafanua kuhusu taarifa ya maandishi ya maamuzi yake (Spika) kuhusu Mbunge wa Bukoba Vijijini, Nazir Karamagi (CCM) iliyonukuu barua ya Mgonja ya Juni 18, mwaka huu, ikithibitisha kuwa uamuzi wa kuongezwa muda mkataba kati ya Kitengo cha Kupakia na Kupakua Makontena Bandarini (TICTS) na serikali, ulifuata taratibu zote.
Barua hiyo ya Mgonja pamoja na kauli ya Spika Sitta ya kuitaja Ikulu, ndivyo vilivyowafanya wananchi na vyombo vya habari waibue mjadala wakihoji uhusiano wa Mgonja kama Katibu Mkuu wa Wizara ya Fedha na Ikulu.
Katika ufafanuzi wake jana, Spika Sitta alikiri kuwa ofisi yake ilipokea barua ya Mgonja inayothibitisha kwamba, mkataba wa TICTS ulifuata taratibu za maamuzi serikalini.
Barua hiyo ya Mgonja, ni moja ya ushahidi uliowasilishwa na Karamagi kwenye Ofisi ya Spika kuthibitisha kauli yake kuhusu mkataba huo.
Ushahidi mwingine uliowasilishwa na Karamagi kwa mujibu wa taarifa ya maamuzi ya Spika, ambayo Mwananchi inayo nakala yake, ni barua yenye Kumbukumbu Na. TYC/A/400/386 ya Oktoba 25, mwaka 2005 iliyosainiwa na Katibu Mkuu Wizara ya Fedha, Peniel Lyimo kwenda kwa Ofisa Mtendaji wa TICTS.
Spika Sitta alisema, baada ya Mgonja kuwasilisha ushahidi huo, ofisi ya Bunge iliona kuwa zina upungufu na hivyo, Katibu wa Bunge akawasiliana na Ikulu kupata ukweli kuhusu suala hilo.
Alisema baada ya mawasiliano hayo, Ikulu ilimwelekeza Mgonja aiandikie Ofisi ya Spika kuelezea suala hilo kwa vile Hazina ndiyo inayoshughulikia raslimali za nchi, ikiwamo bandari.
Wakati huo huo, Mbunge wa Maswa, John Shibuda (CCM), alimweza mwandishi wetu nje ya Ukumbi wa Bunge mjini hapa kwamba, hashangazwi na majibu ya Ikulu kuhusu mkataba wa TICTS.'' Sishangai kwa sababu hata maovu yana msemaji wake,'' alisema.
Spika amkingia kifua Mgonja kuhusu barua toka Ikulu
Na Muhibu Said, Dodoma
Mwananchi
WAKATI baadhi ya wananchi, wakihoji juu ya uhalali wa Katibu Mkuu wa Wizara ya Fedha, Gray Mgonja, kuingilia kazi zisizomhusu kwa kusaini barua ya Ikulu, Spika wa Bunge, Samuel Sitta amejitokeza na kumtetea.
Akizungumza na mwandishi wa gazeti hili jana mjini hapa, Spika Sitta alisema Mgonja, ambaye pia ni Katibu Mkuu wa Hazina, hakuvamia kazi za Ikulu, kama inavyohojiwa na watu hao.
Spika Sitta alitoa kauli hiyo alipotakiwa kufafanua kuhusu taarifa ya maandishi ya maamuzi yake (Spika) kuhusu Mbunge wa Bukoba Vijijini, Nazir Karamagi (CCM) iliyonukuu barua ya Mgonja ya Juni 18, mwaka huu, ikithibitisha kuwa uamuzi wa kuongezwa muda mkataba kati ya Kitengo cha Kupakia na Kupakua Makontena Bandarini (TICTS) na serikali, ulifuata taratibu zote.
Barua hiyo ya Mgonja pamoja na kauli ya Spika Sitta ya kuitaja Ikulu, ndivyo vilivyowafanya wananchi na vyombo vya habari waibue mjadala wakihoji uhusiano wa Mgonja kama Katibu Mkuu wa Wizara ya Fedha na Ikulu.
Katika ufafanuzi wake jana, Spika Sitta alikiri kuwa ofisi yake ilipokea barua ya Mgonja inayothibitisha kwamba, mkataba wa TICTS ulifuata taratibu za maamuzi serikalini.
Barua hiyo ya Mgonja, ni moja ya ushahidi uliowasilishwa na Karamagi kwenye Ofisi ya Spika kuthibitisha kauli yake kuhusu mkataba huo.
Ushahidi mwingine uliowasilishwa na Karamagi kwa mujibu wa taarifa ya maamuzi ya Spika, ambayo Mwananchi inayo nakala yake, ni barua yenye Kumbukumbu Na. TYC/A/400/386 ya Oktoba 25, mwaka 2005 iliyosainiwa na Katibu Mkuu Wizara ya Fedha, Peniel Lyimo kwenda kwa Ofisa Mtendaji wa TICTS.
Spika Sitta alisema, baada ya Mgonja kuwasilisha ushahidi huo, ofisi ya Bunge iliona kuwa zina upungufu na hivyo, Katibu wa Bunge akawasiliana na Ikulu kupata ukweli kuhusu suala hilo.
Alisema baada ya mawasiliano hayo, Ikulu ilimwelekeza Mgonja aiandikie Ofisi ya Spika kuelezea suala hilo kwa vile Hazina ndiyo inayoshughulikia raslimali za nchi, ikiwamo bandari.
Wakati huo huo, Mbunge wa Maswa, John Shibuda (CCM), alimweza mwandishi wetu nje ya Ukumbi wa Bunge mjini hapa kwamba, hashangazwi na majibu ya Ikulu kuhusu mkataba wa TICTS.'' Sishangai kwa sababu hata maovu yana msemaji wake,'' alisema.
Mzee Mwanakijiji
Platinum Member
- Mar 10, 2006
- 33,483
- 40,008
excuse me sir.. huyo Mgonja alikuwa nani wakati TICTS inasainiwa...
BAK
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 11, 2007
- 124,789
- 288,023
Despite State House blessing of TICTS contract extension: Bunge declaration should be final, says CCM MP
-After all, even govt auditor says it was an unlawful deal
THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam
THE Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) contract extension was illegally done and neither State House nor the cabinet of ministers are above the law, at least one Member of Parliament from the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi has re-asserted.
No one is above the law...Even if they say the president and the (ministerial) cabinet authorized this contract extension, it was still an unlawful deal, Mbozi East legislator Godfrey Zambi said in a telephone interview with THISDAY from Dodoma yesterday.
It was Zambi who, back in April this year, successfully tabled a private members motion that resulted in the passage of a parliamentary declaration condemning the controversial TICTS contract extension outright and calling for its termination.
The MP told THISDAY yesterday that Tuesdays surprise announcement in the National Assembly that State House had blessed the deal did not erase the fact that Parliament has already issued a declaration denouncing it.
The parliamentary declaration still stands, said a clearly peeved Zambi., adding: When I tabled my motion, even the Controller and Auditor General had officially declared that the contract extension was unlawful.
The Bunge declaration was issued after CAG Ludovick Utouh, had categorically described the TICTS contract extension as a gross violation of the Public Procurement Act Number 21 of 2004.
According to the CAG�s audit report of government accounts for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2007, the whole process leading up to the extension was in breach of section 69 (1) of the Act.
Zambi pointed out yesterday that the declaration passed by the National Assembly called on the government to initiate the process of terminating the contract extension granted to TICTS.
The Bunge declaration also called for a review of the original 10-year contract signed between TICTS and the government in 2000, in the wake of growing inefficiency problems at the port of Dar es Salaams highly-congested container terminal.
Former president Benjamin Mkapa personally ordered the said contract extension in late 2005, just before winding up his tenure as head of state, and at a time when the original contract was hardly even at its halfway stage.
But despite the latest affirmations that the deal was sanctioned by State House � and by extension also the ministerial cabinet of the time � THISDAYs sources say the current government has already filed a notice of intent to the TICTS proprietors for the termination of the contract extension.
If this comes to pass, it means that the companys contract for leasing the Dar ports lucrative container terminal would come to an end in 2010 - as initially agreed before the controversial extension.
According to THISDAYs previous findings, the then finance minister Basil Mramba informed the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) of then president Mkapa�s intention to extend the TICTS contract via a September 6, 2005 letter with reference number TYC/R/160/32.
Stated Mramba in the letter addressed to the TRA commissioner-general: I would like to inform you that the President (Mkapa) has directed the Ministry of Communication and Transport, specifically the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), to extend TICTS contract to 25 years (from the original 10 years).
The same letter said president Mkapa had also directed the ministry to allow TICTS to use Berth No. 8 at the Dar es Salaam port, as well as the adjacent land and the Ubungo container depot in the city, to store excess containers.
Apart from Zambi, another CCM legislator who has been quite vocal in the august House about the subject of the TICTS contract extension is Anne Kilango Malecela (Same East), who at one point also called for the deal to be reviewed.
In his announcement to the House on Tuesday, Speaker Samwel Sitta said he had received official communication from Ikulu stating that the TICTS contract extension followed all relevant government procedures.
The unexpected State House position is in stark contrast to the CAG report and the parliamentary declaration.
Sitta later told THISDAY that the June 18, 2008 Ikulu letter defending the TICTS deal had been signed by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, Gray Mgonja.
-After all, even govt auditor says it was an unlawful deal
THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam
THE Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) contract extension was illegally done and neither State House nor the cabinet of ministers are above the law, at least one Member of Parliament from the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi has re-asserted.
No one is above the law...Even if they say the president and the (ministerial) cabinet authorized this contract extension, it was still an unlawful deal, Mbozi East legislator Godfrey Zambi said in a telephone interview with THISDAY from Dodoma yesterday.
It was Zambi who, back in April this year, successfully tabled a private members motion that resulted in the passage of a parliamentary declaration condemning the controversial TICTS contract extension outright and calling for its termination.
The MP told THISDAY yesterday that Tuesdays surprise announcement in the National Assembly that State House had blessed the deal did not erase the fact that Parliament has already issued a declaration denouncing it.
The parliamentary declaration still stands, said a clearly peeved Zambi., adding: When I tabled my motion, even the Controller and Auditor General had officially declared that the contract extension was unlawful.
The Bunge declaration was issued after CAG Ludovick Utouh, had categorically described the TICTS contract extension as a gross violation of the Public Procurement Act Number 21 of 2004.
According to the CAG�s audit report of government accounts for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2007, the whole process leading up to the extension was in breach of section 69 (1) of the Act.
Zambi pointed out yesterday that the declaration passed by the National Assembly called on the government to initiate the process of terminating the contract extension granted to TICTS.
The Bunge declaration also called for a review of the original 10-year contract signed between TICTS and the government in 2000, in the wake of growing inefficiency problems at the port of Dar es Salaams highly-congested container terminal.
Former president Benjamin Mkapa personally ordered the said contract extension in late 2005, just before winding up his tenure as head of state, and at a time when the original contract was hardly even at its halfway stage.
But despite the latest affirmations that the deal was sanctioned by State House � and by extension also the ministerial cabinet of the time � THISDAYs sources say the current government has already filed a notice of intent to the TICTS proprietors for the termination of the contract extension.
If this comes to pass, it means that the companys contract for leasing the Dar ports lucrative container terminal would come to an end in 2010 - as initially agreed before the controversial extension.
According to THISDAYs previous findings, the then finance minister Basil Mramba informed the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) of then president Mkapa�s intention to extend the TICTS contract via a September 6, 2005 letter with reference number TYC/R/160/32.
Stated Mramba in the letter addressed to the TRA commissioner-general: I would like to inform you that the President (Mkapa) has directed the Ministry of Communication and Transport, specifically the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), to extend TICTS contract to 25 years (from the original 10 years).
The same letter said president Mkapa had also directed the ministry to allow TICTS to use Berth No. 8 at the Dar es Salaam port, as well as the adjacent land and the Ubungo container depot in the city, to store excess containers.
Apart from Zambi, another CCM legislator who has been quite vocal in the august House about the subject of the TICTS contract extension is Anne Kilango Malecela (Same East), who at one point also called for the deal to be reviewed.
In his announcement to the House on Tuesday, Speaker Samwel Sitta said he had received official communication from Ikulu stating that the TICTS contract extension followed all relevant government procedures.
The unexpected State House position is in stark contrast to the CAG report and the parliamentary declaration.
Sitta later told THISDAY that the June 18, 2008 Ikulu letter defending the TICTS deal had been signed by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, Gray Mgonja.
Mzee Mwanakijiji
Platinum Member
- Mar 10, 2006
- 33,483
- 40,008
This is a very mature train of thoughts... because the StateHouse has acknowledged the move to extend the TICTS it doesn't mean the action was legal. An illegal act remains to be illegal regadless nani amelifafanua kulihalalisha.
Kwa hiyo yawezekana Karamagi hakusema uongo, lakini that has nothing to do with the legality of the extenstion which has been shown to be illegal. In other words, The StateHouse blessed and gave approval of an illegal act.
Kwa hiyo yawezekana Karamagi hakusema uongo, lakini that has nothing to do with the legality of the extenstion which has been shown to be illegal. In other words, The StateHouse blessed and gave approval of an illegal act.
Rev. Kishoka
JF-Expert Member
- Mar 7, 2006
- 4,526
- 1,530
I just read that Gray Mgonja Principle Secretary of Treasury, is the one who signed the letter of extension.
Sasa najiuliza ikiwa CAG alisema mkataba ni batili na haukufuata taratibu, Ikulu na Mgonja wana mamlaka gani kupinda na kukiuka Sheria?
Sasa najiuliza ikiwa CAG alisema mkataba ni batili na haukufuata taratibu, Ikulu na Mgonja wana mamlaka gani kupinda na kukiuka Sheria?
Mtu Mzima
JF-Expert Member
- Oct 4, 2007
- 394
- 124
BAK
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 11, 2007
- 124,789
- 288,023
Controversy still dogs TICTS deal
SEBASTIAN MRINDOKO
THIS DAY
Dar es Salaam
UNCERTAINTY surrounds the implementation of an official parliamentary recommendation for the termination of an illegal contract extension awarded to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) in the twilight days of ex-president Benjamin Mkapas government in 2005.
The Minister for Infrastructure Development, Dr Shukuru Kawambwa, has told THISDAY that the government is still in the process of implementing a National Assembly declaration calling for the scrapping of the dubious contract extension with immediate effect.
The declaration was issued way back in April this year, following the successful tabling by Mbozi East Member of Parliament Godfrey Zambi (CCM) of a private members motion calling for the same. This followed the unveiling by the Controller and Auditor General (CAG), Ludovick Utuoh, of a report on audited government accounts for the financial year ended June 30, 2007, which categorically stated that the TICTS contract had been illegally extended.
According to the CAGs report, there was gross violation of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) of 2004 in the process of extending the lease contract to TICTS from the initial 10 years to a whopping 25 years, as approved by then president Mkapa.
But several months down the line, the government has yet to publicly declare either within or outside the National Assembly whether or not it has terminated the apparently illegal contract extension, as demanded by Parliament on the basis of the CAGs report.
We are still carefully working on the Bunge declaration, for the best interests of the nation, said Kawambwa when contacted in Dar es Salaam for comment on the current state of affairs regarding the TICTS contract.
While there appears to be little headway made in the matter so far, informed sources have hinted at an intensive though quietly-executed lobby pressing MPs and senior government officials to ignore both the CAGs report findings and the subsequent parliamentary declaration.
Very soon we will see MPs and other relevant players being given all-expenses-paid trips abroad, to inspect the operations of other container terminals in Hong Kong and elsewhere. Such moves are very suspicious, said a source familiar with the ongoing lobbying.
Contacted by THISDAY for comment, MP Zambi said yesterday that he was well aware of the efforts being made to try and derail both the parliamentary and CAG positions on the TICTS contract extension issue.
Yes, I am aware of certain people going around trying to lobby some MPS and government officials to delay the implementation of the Bunge declaration, purportedly because it may have severe economic and financial consequences. This is just rubbish, Zambi remarked.
Parliament has already issued the declaration calling for the termination of the contract extension. We are now waiting for the government to play its part, he added.
The Mbozi East legislator said he hopes the government will in the forthcoming October parliamentary session give the august House a progress report on the matter of implementing the Bunge declaration.
The government appears to have already taken some steps towards implementing some of the key issues in our (parliamentary) declaration � but nothing has been said about the contract termination issue, he noted.
The privately-owned TICTS initially signed a 10-year lease agreement with the government in May 2000, but towards the end of 2005 this contract was remarkably extended to 25 years under direct instructions from the then outgoing president Mkapa.
The controversial, 15-year contract extension has since been subject to frequent questioning by Members of Parliament over its legality.
Investigations by THISDAY have already established that TICTS landed the lucrative contract to lease the Dar es Salaam ports container terminal operations only five months after being officially registered.
Official records show that at the time of TICTS registration, there were a total of eight listed company directors, including Nazir Karamagi (the former minister for energy and minerals who recently resigned over the Richmond corruption scandal) and Gulam Chaka, described as a Tanzanian businessman.
In May this year, the TICTS board of directors announced the removal of Karamagi from the post of board chairman.
The ouster of the controversial ex-minister was announced in Dar es Salaam by Neville Bissett, a representative of the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) which is the main shareholder in TICTS.
The HPH group has an interest in a total of 292 berths in 47 ports in 24 countries.
SEBASTIAN MRINDOKO
THIS DAY
Dar es Salaam
UNCERTAINTY surrounds the implementation of an official parliamentary recommendation for the termination of an illegal contract extension awarded to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) in the twilight days of ex-president Benjamin Mkapas government in 2005.
The Minister for Infrastructure Development, Dr Shukuru Kawambwa, has told THISDAY that the government is still in the process of implementing a National Assembly declaration calling for the scrapping of the dubious contract extension with immediate effect.
The declaration was issued way back in April this year, following the successful tabling by Mbozi East Member of Parliament Godfrey Zambi (CCM) of a private members motion calling for the same. This followed the unveiling by the Controller and Auditor General (CAG), Ludovick Utuoh, of a report on audited government accounts for the financial year ended June 30, 2007, which categorically stated that the TICTS contract had been illegally extended.
According to the CAGs report, there was gross violation of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) of 2004 in the process of extending the lease contract to TICTS from the initial 10 years to a whopping 25 years, as approved by then president Mkapa.
But several months down the line, the government has yet to publicly declare either within or outside the National Assembly whether or not it has terminated the apparently illegal contract extension, as demanded by Parliament on the basis of the CAGs report.
We are still carefully working on the Bunge declaration, for the best interests of the nation, said Kawambwa when contacted in Dar es Salaam for comment on the current state of affairs regarding the TICTS contract.
While there appears to be little headway made in the matter so far, informed sources have hinted at an intensive though quietly-executed lobby pressing MPs and senior government officials to ignore both the CAGs report findings and the subsequent parliamentary declaration.
Very soon we will see MPs and other relevant players being given all-expenses-paid trips abroad, to inspect the operations of other container terminals in Hong Kong and elsewhere. Such moves are very suspicious, said a source familiar with the ongoing lobbying.
Contacted by THISDAY for comment, MP Zambi said yesterday that he was well aware of the efforts being made to try and derail both the parliamentary and CAG positions on the TICTS contract extension issue.
Yes, I am aware of certain people going around trying to lobby some MPS and government officials to delay the implementation of the Bunge declaration, purportedly because it may have severe economic and financial consequences. This is just rubbish, Zambi remarked.
Parliament has already issued the declaration calling for the termination of the contract extension. We are now waiting for the government to play its part, he added.
The Mbozi East legislator said he hopes the government will in the forthcoming October parliamentary session give the august House a progress report on the matter of implementing the Bunge declaration.
The government appears to have already taken some steps towards implementing some of the key issues in our (parliamentary) declaration � but nothing has been said about the contract termination issue, he noted.
The privately-owned TICTS initially signed a 10-year lease agreement with the government in May 2000, but towards the end of 2005 this contract was remarkably extended to 25 years under direct instructions from the then outgoing president Mkapa.
The controversial, 15-year contract extension has since been subject to frequent questioning by Members of Parliament over its legality.
Investigations by THISDAY have already established that TICTS landed the lucrative contract to lease the Dar es Salaam ports container terminal operations only five months after being officially registered.
Official records show that at the time of TICTS registration, there were a total of eight listed company directors, including Nazir Karamagi (the former minister for energy and minerals who recently resigned over the Richmond corruption scandal) and Gulam Chaka, described as a Tanzanian businessman.
In May this year, the TICTS board of directors announced the removal of Karamagi from the post of board chairman.
The ouster of the controversial ex-minister was announced in Dar es Salaam by Neville Bissett, a representative of the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) which is the main shareholder in TICTS.
The HPH group has an interest in a total of 292 berths in 47 ports in 24 countries.
BAK
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 11, 2007
- 124,789
- 288,023
Govt must come clean on contract with TICTS
2008-09-06 09:38:37
By Editor
Latest media reports reveal that uncertainty surrounds the implementation of an official recommendation for the termination of an illegal contract extension awarded to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) in 2005.
The House recommendations were prompted by a public furore over a revelation made by the Comptroller and Auditor General that there was gross violation of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) of 2004 in the process of extending the TICTS� contract from the initial 10 years to a whopping 25 years.
This newspaper, quoting its reporter who filed her story from Dodoma, reported in April this year that extension of a lease contract to Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS)-the Dar port sole private operator-was illegally executed, according to the CAG, Ludovick Utouh.
The CAG was unveiling his report for the fiscal year that ended on June 30 last year at a news conference in Dodoma.
Utouh said there was gross violation of the 2004 Public Procurement Act in the whole process of extending the lease pact from ten to 15 years in 2005, and later on to 25 years.
The CAG said the extension of contract was contrary to the Public Procurement Act of 2004, as the law does not allow the agreement to be altered or amended in that manner.
The Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) signed the 10-year lease contract with TICTS in May 2000. Towards the end of 2005, the contract was extended to 15 years, and was further extended to 25 years.
The controversial extension of lease contract and the dismal performance of TICTS have triggered public debate in recent months.
The inefficiency at Dar port container terminal has led to massive congestion as pile up of cargo reached crisis levels.
Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda, in his first three months in office, met media editors for the first time in May, this year in Dar es Salaam and dwelt on a number of issues, including the TICTS contract.
The PM said the Government had already given notice to TICTS for terminating the contract in the year 2010 and the remaining two-year contract period would be pegged to performance.
He said the government had come to the conclusion that the 15-year extension of the TICTS contract after 2010 was wrong, and had notified TICTS to that effect.
The Premier further stated that the government had rejected the 15-year TICTS contract extension, and that the two parties, namely TICTS and the Government, had to go back to the original terms of contract.
Four months after the Prime Minister announced steps towards revoking the contract extension, the Minister for Infrastructure has been quoted this week as stating that the Government is still in the process of implementation of the National Assembly declaration that had called for the scrapping of the dubious contract extension with immediate effect.
We are led to wonder as to what is making the government foot-drag in revoking a grossly flawed port services contract, given the fact that the performance of the said firm has led to huge pile up of non-cleared cargo at Dar port, which has occasioned a great loss to the country`s economy.
We are also asking ourselves what makes the Prime Minister approach such a clear-cut issue with halting steps, given the CAG`s clear verdict on the nullity of contract extension and the unanimous House opposition to the shoddy deal.
We are asking these questions at a time when there is increasing belief among the wananchi that the war against corruption is more verbal than anything else.
We hope that the relevant authorities will not stumble badly in the process of redressing the TICTS contract so that the people`s trust in their leaders is rejuvenated.
Moreover, we plead with our MPs not to succumb to the on-going lobbying that is pressing them to ignore both the CAG`s recommendations and the subsequent House declaration.
It is our firm hope that our most honourable MPs are not that cheap.
SOURCE: Guardian
2008-09-06 09:38:37
By Editor
Latest media reports reveal that uncertainty surrounds the implementation of an official recommendation for the termination of an illegal contract extension awarded to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) in 2005.
The House recommendations were prompted by a public furore over a revelation made by the Comptroller and Auditor General that there was gross violation of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) of 2004 in the process of extending the TICTS� contract from the initial 10 years to a whopping 25 years.
This newspaper, quoting its reporter who filed her story from Dodoma, reported in April this year that extension of a lease contract to Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS)-the Dar port sole private operator-was illegally executed, according to the CAG, Ludovick Utouh.
The CAG was unveiling his report for the fiscal year that ended on June 30 last year at a news conference in Dodoma.
Utouh said there was gross violation of the 2004 Public Procurement Act in the whole process of extending the lease pact from ten to 15 years in 2005, and later on to 25 years.
The CAG said the extension of contract was contrary to the Public Procurement Act of 2004, as the law does not allow the agreement to be altered or amended in that manner.
The Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) signed the 10-year lease contract with TICTS in May 2000. Towards the end of 2005, the contract was extended to 15 years, and was further extended to 25 years.
The controversial extension of lease contract and the dismal performance of TICTS have triggered public debate in recent months.
The inefficiency at Dar port container terminal has led to massive congestion as pile up of cargo reached crisis levels.
Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda, in his first three months in office, met media editors for the first time in May, this year in Dar es Salaam and dwelt on a number of issues, including the TICTS contract.
The PM said the Government had already given notice to TICTS for terminating the contract in the year 2010 and the remaining two-year contract period would be pegged to performance.
He said the government had come to the conclusion that the 15-year extension of the TICTS contract after 2010 was wrong, and had notified TICTS to that effect.
The Premier further stated that the government had rejected the 15-year TICTS contract extension, and that the two parties, namely TICTS and the Government, had to go back to the original terms of contract.
Four months after the Prime Minister announced steps towards revoking the contract extension, the Minister for Infrastructure has been quoted this week as stating that the Government is still in the process of implementation of the National Assembly declaration that had called for the scrapping of the dubious contract extension with immediate effect.
We are led to wonder as to what is making the government foot-drag in revoking a grossly flawed port services contract, given the fact that the performance of the said firm has led to huge pile up of non-cleared cargo at Dar port, which has occasioned a great loss to the country`s economy.
We are also asking ourselves what makes the Prime Minister approach such a clear-cut issue with halting steps, given the CAG`s clear verdict on the nullity of contract extension and the unanimous House opposition to the shoddy deal.
We are asking these questions at a time when there is increasing belief among the wananchi that the war against corruption is more verbal than anything else.
We hope that the relevant authorities will not stumble badly in the process of redressing the TICTS contract so that the people`s trust in their leaders is rejuvenated.
Moreover, we plead with our MPs not to succumb to the on-going lobbying that is pressing them to ignore both the CAG`s recommendations and the subsequent House declaration.
It is our firm hope that our most honourable MPs are not that cheap.
SOURCE: Guardian
BAK
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 11, 2007
- 124,789
- 288,023
TRA seizes Sh6.5bn from Ticts in tax dispute
By Bernard James
THE CITIZEN
The Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has seized Sh6.5 billion belonging to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (Ticts) over a tax dispute, The Citizen has learnt.
The state agency, we have established, moved early this month and attached a bank account operated by Ticts, a cargo handling company enjoying lucrative monopoly at the Dar es Salaam port.
Ticts, whose board chairman was until recently the former Energy and Minerals minister, Mr Nazir Karamagi, is fighting back and has sued TRA at the Tax Revenue Appeals Board (Trab) over the seizure.
Details from the board indicate that Ticts, whose 25-year cargo-handling contract has been dogged by controversy, unsuccessfully fought to keep the money out of TRA�s reach.
TRA moved to seize the money after the revenue body�s tax assessments revealed that Ticts owed the Government Sh6.5 billion in unpaid taxes.
On September 2, TRA issued a notice of attachment of Ticts� account at Citibank and proceeded to recover the delayed tax claims.
Before the seizure, Ticts had lodged a notice of objection to the assessment by TRA and petitioned against any action taken against it. However, the plea was not granted.
As the company�s management was contemplating their next course of action, TRA stepped in and presented Citibank with a notice of attachment of Ticts� account.
TRA director general Harry Kitillya declined to comment on the issue on Saturday. �We cannot reveal information on taxpayers in newspapers. The law prevents us from doing so. It is not my duty to do so,� he said.
Under Tanzania�s tax law, commercial banks are under obligation to release funds from accounts of defaulting taxpayers if there is no order issued by Trab or a court of law restraining TRA.
Ticts learnt of the move when it was too late on September 3, and applied to Trab for an emergency order restraining the enforcement of the attachment notice.
However, an ex parte order granted against TRA and restraining the authority from executing recovery measures tax pending hearing and determination of the application also arrived late.
The order, according to our sources, failed to save the day for Ticts as it reached Citibank when TRA had already managed to transfer Sh6.5 billion.
Ticts had argued that it resisted the tax recovery measures on the grounds that the firm had already initiated objection procedures.
The company claims that TRA�s attachment of its bank account was illegal and an affront to the dispute resolution procedures provided for by the laws of Tanzania.
It argues that having been served with an objection to the assessment, which was yet to be determined, TRA was legally bound not to proceed and demand full payment of the disputed tax.
It said its notice of objection to the TRA tax assessment was yet to be determined as provided for under section 12 (1) of the Tax Revenue Appeals Act, 2000.
Section 12 of the act allows any person disputing an assessment made by the commissioner general to file a notice in writing to the commissioner general, objecting to the assessment.
However, subsection 2 of the same states that where a notice of objection to the assessment is given, the person objecting shall pay the amount of tax which is not in dispute or deemed not to be in dispute.
The subsection further states that one objecting the assessment shall pay a third of the assessment pending hearing and determination of his/her objection to the assessment.
Sources have told The Citizen that TRA based its move on the subsection.
Ticts is now accusing TRA of defying the order of the board and going ahead to enforce what it described as �collection of illegal tax�. It has again gone to Trab, this time demanding that the revenue body be punished for defying an order of the board.
It also says the body violated its own Tax Revenue Appeals Act, 2000.
It maintains that the notice of attachment was illegal as it had already served TRA with an objection to the assessment which was yet to be determined.
Meanwhile, in another dispute, Ticts got temporary reprieve after Trab ordered TRA to grant a waiver to pay over Sh950million in tax demanded by the authority pending determination of objection to the tax.
The board ordered TRA to admit Ticts notice of objection of the tax and proceed to hear it on merit.
TRA had in July last year issued a notice to demand Sh526.4 million from Ticts. The company then disputed the assessment and lodged with TRA a notice of objection to the assessment.
By so doing, Tics had argued, TRA pre-empted the determination of the objection to the appellant's prejudice.
By Bernard James
THE CITIZEN
The Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has seized Sh6.5 billion belonging to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (Ticts) over a tax dispute, The Citizen has learnt.
The state agency, we have established, moved early this month and attached a bank account operated by Ticts, a cargo handling company enjoying lucrative monopoly at the Dar es Salaam port.
Ticts, whose board chairman was until recently the former Energy and Minerals minister, Mr Nazir Karamagi, is fighting back and has sued TRA at the Tax Revenue Appeals Board (Trab) over the seizure.
Details from the board indicate that Ticts, whose 25-year cargo-handling contract has been dogged by controversy, unsuccessfully fought to keep the money out of TRA�s reach.
TRA moved to seize the money after the revenue body�s tax assessments revealed that Ticts owed the Government Sh6.5 billion in unpaid taxes.
On September 2, TRA issued a notice of attachment of Ticts� account at Citibank and proceeded to recover the delayed tax claims.
Before the seizure, Ticts had lodged a notice of objection to the assessment by TRA and petitioned against any action taken against it. However, the plea was not granted.
As the company�s management was contemplating their next course of action, TRA stepped in and presented Citibank with a notice of attachment of Ticts� account.
TRA director general Harry Kitillya declined to comment on the issue on Saturday. �We cannot reveal information on taxpayers in newspapers. The law prevents us from doing so. It is not my duty to do so,� he said.
Under Tanzania�s tax law, commercial banks are under obligation to release funds from accounts of defaulting taxpayers if there is no order issued by Trab or a court of law restraining TRA.
Ticts learnt of the move when it was too late on September 3, and applied to Trab for an emergency order restraining the enforcement of the attachment notice.
However, an ex parte order granted against TRA and restraining the authority from executing recovery measures tax pending hearing and determination of the application also arrived late.
The order, according to our sources, failed to save the day for Ticts as it reached Citibank when TRA had already managed to transfer Sh6.5 billion.
Ticts had argued that it resisted the tax recovery measures on the grounds that the firm had already initiated objection procedures.
The company claims that TRA�s attachment of its bank account was illegal and an affront to the dispute resolution procedures provided for by the laws of Tanzania.
It argues that having been served with an objection to the assessment, which was yet to be determined, TRA was legally bound not to proceed and demand full payment of the disputed tax.
It said its notice of objection to the TRA tax assessment was yet to be determined as provided for under section 12 (1) of the Tax Revenue Appeals Act, 2000.
Section 12 of the act allows any person disputing an assessment made by the commissioner general to file a notice in writing to the commissioner general, objecting to the assessment.
However, subsection 2 of the same states that where a notice of objection to the assessment is given, the person objecting shall pay the amount of tax which is not in dispute or deemed not to be in dispute.
The subsection further states that one objecting the assessment shall pay a third of the assessment pending hearing and determination of his/her objection to the assessment.
Sources have told The Citizen that TRA based its move on the subsection.
Ticts is now accusing TRA of defying the order of the board and going ahead to enforce what it described as �collection of illegal tax�. It has again gone to Trab, this time demanding that the revenue body be punished for defying an order of the board.
It also says the body violated its own Tax Revenue Appeals Act, 2000.
It maintains that the notice of attachment was illegal as it had already served TRA with an objection to the assessment which was yet to be determined.
Meanwhile, in another dispute, Ticts got temporary reprieve after Trab ordered TRA to grant a waiver to pay over Sh950million in tax demanded by the authority pending determination of objection to the tax.
The board ordered TRA to admit Ticts notice of objection of the tax and proceed to hear it on merit.
TRA had in July last year issued a notice to demand Sh526.4 million from Ticts. The company then disputed the assessment and lodged with TRA a notice of objection to the assessment.
By so doing, Tics had argued, TRA pre-empted the determination of the objection to the appellant's prejudice.
BAK
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 11, 2007
- 124,789
- 288,023
EDITORIAL: Decision to revoke TICTS contract must be implemented without delay
EDITOR
THIS DAY
DAR ES SALAAM
WE are concerned about the governments apparent reluctance to implement an official parliamentary resolution for the termination of an illegal contract extension awarded to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) in the twilight days of ex-President Benjamin Mkapas government in 2005.
It is almost six months now since Parliament issued the resolution calling for the immediate termination of the 15-year extension to TICTS contract, but there has been no firm official action taken towards this end.
We dont see any reason why the government should dilly-dally on this issue after the National Assembly declared that the dubious contract should be scrapped with immediate effect.
Now the Deputy Minister for Infrastructure Development, Hezekiah Chibulunje, says the government is currently compiling a report on the subject for submission in Parliament. If we may ask, what kind of report is this that the government has been compiling for all this time?
What we know is that the National Assembly reached the decision on the basis of the report by the Controller and Auditor General (CAG), which categorically stated that the TICTS contract had been illegally extended.
It was the same report that showed there was gross violation of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) of 2004 in the process of extending the lease contract to TICTS from the initial 10 years to a whopping 25 years, as approved by then president Mkapa.
On the basis of this, we expected the government to act immediately and terminate the illegal contract and take action against all those who were involved in this wrong-doing.
Any further delay in implementing the resolution will make us believe the nasty rumours flying around that there is an intensive though quietly-executed lobby pressing legislators and senior government officials to �ignore� both the CAG�S report findings and the subsequent parliamentary declaration.
We don�t believe that this country has reached a stage where people who violate the law can be protected in any way.
For sure, any efforts said to be made to try and derail both the parliamentary and CAG positions on the TICTS contract extension issue, will end in a bog.
By implementing the parliamentary resolution without delay the government will demonstrate that it respects the democratic principles and the rule of law.
EDITOR
THIS DAY
DAR ES SALAAM
WE are concerned about the governments apparent reluctance to implement an official parliamentary resolution for the termination of an illegal contract extension awarded to the Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) in the twilight days of ex-President Benjamin Mkapas government in 2005.
It is almost six months now since Parliament issued the resolution calling for the immediate termination of the 15-year extension to TICTS contract, but there has been no firm official action taken towards this end.
We dont see any reason why the government should dilly-dally on this issue after the National Assembly declared that the dubious contract should be scrapped with immediate effect.
Now the Deputy Minister for Infrastructure Development, Hezekiah Chibulunje, says the government is currently compiling a report on the subject for submission in Parliament. If we may ask, what kind of report is this that the government has been compiling for all this time?
What we know is that the National Assembly reached the decision on the basis of the report by the Controller and Auditor General (CAG), which categorically stated that the TICTS contract had been illegally extended.
It was the same report that showed there was gross violation of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) of 2004 in the process of extending the lease contract to TICTS from the initial 10 years to a whopping 25 years, as approved by then president Mkapa.
On the basis of this, we expected the government to act immediately and terminate the illegal contract and take action against all those who were involved in this wrong-doing.
Any further delay in implementing the resolution will make us believe the nasty rumours flying around that there is an intensive though quietly-executed lobby pressing legislators and senior government officials to �ignore� both the CAG�S report findings and the subsequent parliamentary declaration.
We don�t believe that this country has reached a stage where people who violate the law can be protected in any way.
For sure, any efforts said to be made to try and derail both the parliamentary and CAG positions on the TICTS contract extension issue, will end in a bog.
By implementing the parliamentary resolution without delay the government will demonstrate that it respects the democratic principles and the rule of law.
Bill
JF-Expert Member
- Oct 5, 2007
- 8,290
- 8,510
Hivi wewe nyambafu unayepost kwa jina langu ni nani, aisee ukome. Admin mi sijaweka hiyo post kuna mtu ka access kapost. Hebu shughulikia hii
Invisible
Robot
- Feb 11, 2006
- 9,075
- 7,878
Dah mkuu unajipaka mwenyewe kweli vile! Uliyaandika haya tarehe 5 Februari 2008, mida ya saa 07:13 PM ukiwa katika PC hiyohiyo unayotumia sasa hivi na topic ilikuwa na jina hili "Dk Silaa Aibana Serikali Kuhusu Kampuni Ya TICTS"
Pundit
JF-Expert Member
- Feb 4, 2007
- 3,733
- 123
Kama ume save login na password kwenye computer browser yako, akija mtu yeyote kuitumia na kwenda www.jamiiforums.com anaweza ku post kwa kutumia jina lako, kwa hiyo inawezekana ni mtu wa hapo ilipo computer anatumia login yako kama umeisave.
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