Egnecious
JF-Expert Member
- Jul 8, 2015
- 899
- 999
*AN OPEN LETTER TO HON. PETER SIMON MSIGWA, MP FOR IRINGA URBAN CONSTITUENCY (TANZANIA) REGARDING PRESIDENT MAGUFULI’S STATEMENT ON ACCESS MARKETS FOR SMALLHOLDER PRODUCERS IN TANZANIA AND REFUGEE ISSUES*
6 January 2019
For Immediate Release Worldwide
I am writing as a Tanzanian citizen, living in READING, UK, in response to the letter I read on the internet, claimed to have been written by Hon. Peter Simon Msigwa, Member of Parliament for IRINGA Constituency.
It is said that paralysis of analysis is dangerous for development of human beings. This is coupled with little knowledge, unable to present an objective analysis to fairly present the truth on which action for development could hinge.
Indeed these words are true.
I have read, with deep sadness, a letter written for immediate release to the world community by a sadist Tanzanian Member of Parliament for Iringa Urban Constituency, who also calls himself a Reverend, Peter Simon Msigwa about a politically correct statement made by Tanzanian President John Magufuli on WFP cereal demand and access market for smallholders in Tanzania.
Before I further up into this letter, kindly allow me to congratulate President Magufuli for open up doors for many a people and particularly, for spearheading fight against graft.
This time, our smallholder producers who had a milliard of market challenges, making them fail to produce for market volatility, found a stable and predicted market for their produce through WFP. I salute you Mr President for pioneering change in our continent. Congratulations.
Tanzania which remains the largest host of refugees and asylum seekers in the region, (approximately 350,000) has been an epi centre for the regional stability. It is a fortress and refuge for those who found no peace and security in their homeland.
Being traditionally generous across generations, Tanzania welcomes them. Some have been naturalized. There are plenty of examples. This tradition has never waned to date. Tanzania is traditionally welcoming and generous people.
I am not a politician. I am not even fancying politics, particularly those mediocre MPs who form a burdensome liability in our societies. Mr Peter Simon Msigwa’s letter is self-defeating, misleading, false, deceptive, and disingenuous and untruthful. These are the brand of politicians I dislike.
I now understand why our continent fails to speed up its development path. It is because of hypocritical politicians with tightly shut up windows of analysis, unable to reason and provide a rational picture of events in our societies.
Tanzania, through its National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA), signed agreement to sell 36,000 metric tons of maize to the World Food Programme (WFP) for TSh21 billion (US$9.1million). This has not been the first time such a deal is signed between Tanzania and WFP.
It is such a great opportunity which will encourage growth of the sector. I do not want to be hypocrite, it is a great opportunity. Opportunity is opportunity, regardless of the source. The economists will agree with me. Weather you supply a need with tears or laughter, it remains supplying a need. Let us not be hypocrites.
There have been various programmes signed between Tanzania and WFP aimed at helping Tanzania boost market access for its large group of smallholder producers who find market challenges for their produce.
WFP always strives to ensure Tanzania increases its capacity for grain production and supplies.
I remember the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania and WFP signed a Memorandum of Understanding that allows WFP to buy up to 200,000 tons of maize annually from NFRA. We got this news while watching a match at Madejski Stadium in Reading in 2011.
This ignorant MP should raise to his senses. WFP uses the grains bought from NFRA for its food assistance programmes in the region. In the past years, countries with food scarcity such as Kenya, Somalia or South Sudan benefitted from the programme.
Normally, this food assistance is not only directed to the refugees, it is untrue. Yes, this time it could be directed to the refugees but not always. This is not UNHCR.
Most of African agriculture is rain-fed. In most cases production could be affected by insufficient rainfall hence harvests may not be guaranteed in some countries in the region. They would, therefore, require food assistance.
Tanzania has a comparative advantage. It receives adequate rainfall. It has fertile land and most of its land is arable. Tanzania remains East Africa’s food basket. Any reasonable person should understand why Dr Magufuli emphasized this need. WFP too understands and works with Tanzania to enhance its food crops production capacities.
Unfortunately, not many Tanzanians understand that their country was East Africa’s food basket. They may not know the huge potential the nation has yet it not taped.
Again, there is a huge opportunity to sell food stuffs to the needy neighbors. WFP buys grains and supplies it as part of its food assistance programme to countries in scarcity.
Food scarcity does not necessarily emanate from unstable, conflict ridden regions but also weather conditions could be one of the reasons. This mediocre MP should know these facts. If he did, he would stop trading abuses in the Parliament, despite of nicknaming himself a man of God. You will know them by their deeds.
However, in all circumstances, the truth remains, opportunity for food market exists and Tanzania is a sole sure provider in the region. This is what President Magufuli, a high performing President in the region, referred to. We all understood.
As part of my new year resolutions, I will visit home and get myself some few acres for maize production. This is in support of President Magufuli’s call and securing of a reliable market.
Smallholder producers in Tanzania and their associations have had a few marketing opportunities. Most of them sell at the farm gate to traders or aggregators at discounted prices. That is why Kibaigwa International Grain Market has had bumper supplies.
Together with partners, WFP financed a programme to enhance smallholder production in 2011. The programme that was called P4P, helped to enhance farmers’ capacities to raise productivity, store commodities and improve quality.
“This marks a significant shift in Tanzania’s role as a regional grain trader,” says the then WFP Country Director Richard Ragan in 2012. “Not only is the agreement good for the overall economy, it's good for the small farmers who make up 75 per cent of Tanzania’s workforce, ” he commented.
Between July 2011 and July 2013 WFP signed an agreement with the Government of Tanzania to buy more than 400,000 tons of maize from NFRA.
These purchases supplied NFRA with a fresh infusion of capital and an opportunity to rotate and renew its stocks, enabling the agency to buy more food from Tanzanian smallholders.
The Executive Director of the UN Organisation, David Beasley, said in Dar es Salaam recently that WFP planned to buy between 75,000 and 100,000 metric tonnes of maize from the 30,000 tonnes it had already bought so far, as it continues to expand reliable market for maize produced in Tanzania.
Therefore, this stupid allegations from the below average opposition MP from Tanzania, Peter Msigwa, calling himself Reverend is very unfortunate.
He could probably blame coffin makers or weapon manufacturers and doctors who see opportunities everywhere. The doctors would be jobless if there were no sick people.
Supplying food is a blessing, anyway. It is sad to have representatives who cannot make a very simple economic analysis.
Obviously President Magufuli’s statement did not mean to take advantage of the regional instabilities to make money. Weather in conflicts or in peace, people will need food. Fortunately, WFP supplies food assistance to all needy groups, irrespective of the reason for the scarcity.
Focusing only on refugees is deliberate understatement.
Saving lives is a number one priority. Mr Msigwa is so myopic. His arguments only reveal his paralysis of analysis and failure to view the broader picture in the mission of WFP. Any wise and intelligent person, will simply dismiss his childish thinking.
Sincerely, Tanzania needs 100 or more years to parade a competent opposition in the country, if this is the most brilliant opposition MP they rely on. A first year student of economics or business programme would have fielded a better argument than this shameful lawmaker’s.
Tanzania’s regional record in hosting refugees remains unchanged, it is traditional. Before the United Nations Convention relating the Status of Refugees was ratified in Geneva on 28 July 1951 and Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees, New York, 31 January 1967, Tanzania had started to host Burundian refugees since 1940s.
President Magufuli’s statement is only quoted deliberately out of context by Mr Peter Msigwa, trying to look for a political kick. Sadly, this puts him to more shame than he thought.
Tanzania’s economic competitors who also wished they could access this strategic opportunity provided him with a lead.
Again, WFP does not only serve refugees or war torn areas but supplies food assistance to all regions with food scarcity irrespective of the reasons for the bad omen.
A letter like this one is a disgrace to nations like Tanzania which remains a beacon of regional leadership and peace. It is one of the five African nations with the fastest economic growth.
I appeal to the Speaker of Tanzania Parliament to organize a training that would help opposition MPs in Tanzania to enhance their critical thinking abilities; perhaps they can talk some sense but not this one which showcases a high level of ignorance.
My friend from Ghana was laughing at me when she read Msigwa’s letter. It humiliates. The kind of opposition MP in Tanzania, if this letter has truly been written by Mr Msigwa, are characterized by very low thinking capacities. They, therefore, lack general competencies.
Indeed, they display a paralysis of analysis. It is indeed humiliating. I call for anyone to ignore him. We in Tanzania are not down to his level.
*Nicolaus Mgweno Mnkeni,
Reading, United Kingdom*
Sent using Jamii Forums mobile app
6 January 2019
For Immediate Release Worldwide
I am writing as a Tanzanian citizen, living in READING, UK, in response to the letter I read on the internet, claimed to have been written by Hon. Peter Simon Msigwa, Member of Parliament for IRINGA Constituency.
It is said that paralysis of analysis is dangerous for development of human beings. This is coupled with little knowledge, unable to present an objective analysis to fairly present the truth on which action for development could hinge.
Indeed these words are true.
I have read, with deep sadness, a letter written for immediate release to the world community by a sadist Tanzanian Member of Parliament for Iringa Urban Constituency, who also calls himself a Reverend, Peter Simon Msigwa about a politically correct statement made by Tanzanian President John Magufuli on WFP cereal demand and access market for smallholders in Tanzania.
Before I further up into this letter, kindly allow me to congratulate President Magufuli for open up doors for many a people and particularly, for spearheading fight against graft.
This time, our smallholder producers who had a milliard of market challenges, making them fail to produce for market volatility, found a stable and predicted market for their produce through WFP. I salute you Mr President for pioneering change in our continent. Congratulations.
Tanzania which remains the largest host of refugees and asylum seekers in the region, (approximately 350,000) has been an epi centre for the regional stability. It is a fortress and refuge for those who found no peace and security in their homeland.
Being traditionally generous across generations, Tanzania welcomes them. Some have been naturalized. There are plenty of examples. This tradition has never waned to date. Tanzania is traditionally welcoming and generous people.
I am not a politician. I am not even fancying politics, particularly those mediocre MPs who form a burdensome liability in our societies. Mr Peter Simon Msigwa’s letter is self-defeating, misleading, false, deceptive, and disingenuous and untruthful. These are the brand of politicians I dislike.
I now understand why our continent fails to speed up its development path. It is because of hypocritical politicians with tightly shut up windows of analysis, unable to reason and provide a rational picture of events in our societies.
Tanzania, through its National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA), signed agreement to sell 36,000 metric tons of maize to the World Food Programme (WFP) for TSh21 billion (US$9.1million). This has not been the first time such a deal is signed between Tanzania and WFP.
It is such a great opportunity which will encourage growth of the sector. I do not want to be hypocrite, it is a great opportunity. Opportunity is opportunity, regardless of the source. The economists will agree with me. Weather you supply a need with tears or laughter, it remains supplying a need. Let us not be hypocrites.
There have been various programmes signed between Tanzania and WFP aimed at helping Tanzania boost market access for its large group of smallholder producers who find market challenges for their produce.
WFP always strives to ensure Tanzania increases its capacity for grain production and supplies.
I remember the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania and WFP signed a Memorandum of Understanding that allows WFP to buy up to 200,000 tons of maize annually from NFRA. We got this news while watching a match at Madejski Stadium in Reading in 2011.
This ignorant MP should raise to his senses. WFP uses the grains bought from NFRA for its food assistance programmes in the region. In the past years, countries with food scarcity such as Kenya, Somalia or South Sudan benefitted from the programme.
Normally, this food assistance is not only directed to the refugees, it is untrue. Yes, this time it could be directed to the refugees but not always. This is not UNHCR.
Most of African agriculture is rain-fed. In most cases production could be affected by insufficient rainfall hence harvests may not be guaranteed in some countries in the region. They would, therefore, require food assistance.
Tanzania has a comparative advantage. It receives adequate rainfall. It has fertile land and most of its land is arable. Tanzania remains East Africa’s food basket. Any reasonable person should understand why Dr Magufuli emphasized this need. WFP too understands and works with Tanzania to enhance its food crops production capacities.
Unfortunately, not many Tanzanians understand that their country was East Africa’s food basket. They may not know the huge potential the nation has yet it not taped.
Again, there is a huge opportunity to sell food stuffs to the needy neighbors. WFP buys grains and supplies it as part of its food assistance programme to countries in scarcity.
Food scarcity does not necessarily emanate from unstable, conflict ridden regions but also weather conditions could be one of the reasons. This mediocre MP should know these facts. If he did, he would stop trading abuses in the Parliament, despite of nicknaming himself a man of God. You will know them by their deeds.
However, in all circumstances, the truth remains, opportunity for food market exists and Tanzania is a sole sure provider in the region. This is what President Magufuli, a high performing President in the region, referred to. We all understood.
As part of my new year resolutions, I will visit home and get myself some few acres for maize production. This is in support of President Magufuli’s call and securing of a reliable market.
Smallholder producers in Tanzania and their associations have had a few marketing opportunities. Most of them sell at the farm gate to traders or aggregators at discounted prices. That is why Kibaigwa International Grain Market has had bumper supplies.
Together with partners, WFP financed a programme to enhance smallholder production in 2011. The programme that was called P4P, helped to enhance farmers’ capacities to raise productivity, store commodities and improve quality.
“This marks a significant shift in Tanzania’s role as a regional grain trader,” says the then WFP Country Director Richard Ragan in 2012. “Not only is the agreement good for the overall economy, it's good for the small farmers who make up 75 per cent of Tanzania’s workforce, ” he commented.
Between July 2011 and July 2013 WFP signed an agreement with the Government of Tanzania to buy more than 400,000 tons of maize from NFRA.
These purchases supplied NFRA with a fresh infusion of capital and an opportunity to rotate and renew its stocks, enabling the agency to buy more food from Tanzanian smallholders.
The Executive Director of the UN Organisation, David Beasley, said in Dar es Salaam recently that WFP planned to buy between 75,000 and 100,000 metric tonnes of maize from the 30,000 tonnes it had already bought so far, as it continues to expand reliable market for maize produced in Tanzania.
Therefore, this stupid allegations from the below average opposition MP from Tanzania, Peter Msigwa, calling himself Reverend is very unfortunate.
He could probably blame coffin makers or weapon manufacturers and doctors who see opportunities everywhere. The doctors would be jobless if there were no sick people.
Supplying food is a blessing, anyway. It is sad to have representatives who cannot make a very simple economic analysis.
Obviously President Magufuli’s statement did not mean to take advantage of the regional instabilities to make money. Weather in conflicts or in peace, people will need food. Fortunately, WFP supplies food assistance to all needy groups, irrespective of the reason for the scarcity.
Focusing only on refugees is deliberate understatement.
Saving lives is a number one priority. Mr Msigwa is so myopic. His arguments only reveal his paralysis of analysis and failure to view the broader picture in the mission of WFP. Any wise and intelligent person, will simply dismiss his childish thinking.
Sincerely, Tanzania needs 100 or more years to parade a competent opposition in the country, if this is the most brilliant opposition MP they rely on. A first year student of economics or business programme would have fielded a better argument than this shameful lawmaker’s.
Tanzania’s regional record in hosting refugees remains unchanged, it is traditional. Before the United Nations Convention relating the Status of Refugees was ratified in Geneva on 28 July 1951 and Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees, New York, 31 January 1967, Tanzania had started to host Burundian refugees since 1940s.
President Magufuli’s statement is only quoted deliberately out of context by Mr Peter Msigwa, trying to look for a political kick. Sadly, this puts him to more shame than he thought.
Tanzania’s economic competitors who also wished they could access this strategic opportunity provided him with a lead.
Again, WFP does not only serve refugees or war torn areas but supplies food assistance to all regions with food scarcity irrespective of the reasons for the bad omen.
A letter like this one is a disgrace to nations like Tanzania which remains a beacon of regional leadership and peace. It is one of the five African nations with the fastest economic growth.
I appeal to the Speaker of Tanzania Parliament to organize a training that would help opposition MPs in Tanzania to enhance their critical thinking abilities; perhaps they can talk some sense but not this one which showcases a high level of ignorance.
My friend from Ghana was laughing at me when she read Msigwa’s letter. It humiliates. The kind of opposition MP in Tanzania, if this letter has truly been written by Mr Msigwa, are characterized by very low thinking capacities. They, therefore, lack general competencies.
Indeed, they display a paralysis of analysis. It is indeed humiliating. I call for anyone to ignore him. We in Tanzania are not down to his level.
*Nicolaus Mgweno Mnkeni,
Reading, United Kingdom*
Sent using Jamii Forums mobile app
