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Dr Edward Hosea corners SFO
By Staff writer
14th February 2010
Dr Edward Hosea
The Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) has written official letter to the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) demanding details on how the $40million dubious radar deal case was sealed between the Britons' investigators and British Aerospace Engineering System.
According to inside sources within the PCCB, the official letter was written by the Bureau's Czar Dr Edward Hosea on Wednesday this week in the wake of BAE System's agreement to pay back $60million as penalty for all wrongdoings that clouded the radar deal between the company and Tanzanian government.
Apart from demanding details on how the deal was concluded, PCCB also wants to know the fate of Britons it accuses of receiving millions of dollars in bribes during the radar deal.
The Britons are Michael Peter Rouse, Sir Richard Harry Evans, Michael John Turner, Julia Adgridge and two senior officials from BAE System.
It is believed that together with their local counterparts in Tanzania, the suspects pocketed more than $12million as bribes in order to facilitate the deal that milked the country an extra $28million.
At least four Tanzanian suspects were being investigated by both the SFO and the PCCB. They include former Attorney General Andrew Chenge, former Central Bank governor Idris Rashidi, Sailesh Vithlani and his close partner Tanil Somaiya.
Dr Hosea confirmed this week that he has written official letter to SFO regarding the matter but declined to give more details.
"For your information we have already written official letter to SFO demanding key details before we proceed with the matter in our own ways and according to our laws." He told The Guardian on Sunday.
He insisted that his Bureau was still interested in ensuring that all those implicated in the scam are arrested and prosecuted before the court of law regardless of the agreement reached between SFO and BAE System.
According to details from the SFO's investigation, the actual price of the military radar sold to Tanzania at that time was $12million, but Tanzania paid about $40million - with the extra $28million going into the pockets of those involved, both government officials and private individuals.
Under the new deal between the SFO and BAE System announced last week, Tanzania may get a refund of $28 million (Sh37.8 billion)-an amount that could pay for 9,500 students to pursue their undergraduate studies for two years or provide 7.4 million families with treated mosquito nets at a cost of Sh5000 per net.
In 2006, the UK investigators established that BAE System had secretly paid a $12m commission into the Swiss bank account of Sailesh Vithlani in a deal that led to Tanzania, one of the world's poorest countries, buying a military radar system with only nominal justification.
The back-door payment to the Tanzanian middleman represented 30 percent of the contract value. Tanzania had to borrow to finance the deal, which critics said was unnecessarily and overpriced.
Chenge was forced to resign in 2008 after investigators discovered more than £500,000 in a Jersey bank account he controlled but he strongly denied the money had come from BAE. Early in 2008, the UK investigators said that Chenge had received $1.5m (Sh2.1bn) in kickbacks from the deal through a slush fund he set up in the UK island of Jersey.
According to a draft report written by the SFO and seen by The Guardian on Sunday, Chenge received payments through six credit transfers between June 19, 1997, and April 17, 1998, while he was serving as Attorney General.
The billions were paid to account No.59662999 owned by Franton Investment Limited through Bank Code No 204505 of Barclays Bank Plc, according to the draft report, a final version of which was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The SFO also established that Chenge owns Franton Investment, a registered company that appears to have been established primarily to enable the transfer of the dirty money. According to information provided by the Jersey Authority, the $1.5m was transferred from a Frankfurt branch of Barclays Bank to Chenge's account at a Jersey branch.
For example, the SFO established that on September 20, 1999, Chenge personally authorised the transfer of $1.2m from the Franton account to Royal Bank of Scotland International in Jersey. In May 1998, Chenge also authorised the transfer of $600,000 to an account owned and operated by Langley Investments Ltd.
The account was officially operated by former Central Bank Governor Dr Idrissa Rashidi.
The SFO report concluded that both Rashidi and Chenge were key figures in the corrupt radar deal, but they were acting with the full support of top officials from the third phase regime.
SOURCE: GUARDIAN ON SUNDAY
By Staff writer
14th February 2010
Dr Edward Hosea
The Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) has written official letter to the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) demanding details on how the $40million dubious radar deal case was sealed between the Britons' investigators and British Aerospace Engineering System.
According to inside sources within the PCCB, the official letter was written by the Bureau's Czar Dr Edward Hosea on Wednesday this week in the wake of BAE System's agreement to pay back $60million as penalty for all wrongdoings that clouded the radar deal between the company and Tanzanian government.
Apart from demanding details on how the deal was concluded, PCCB also wants to know the fate of Britons it accuses of receiving millions of dollars in bribes during the radar deal.
The Britons are Michael Peter Rouse, Sir Richard Harry Evans, Michael John Turner, Julia Adgridge and two senior officials from BAE System.
It is believed that together with their local counterparts in Tanzania, the suspects pocketed more than $12million as bribes in order to facilitate the deal that milked the country an extra $28million.
At least four Tanzanian suspects were being investigated by both the SFO and the PCCB. They include former Attorney General Andrew Chenge, former Central Bank governor Idris Rashidi, Sailesh Vithlani and his close partner Tanil Somaiya.
Dr Hosea confirmed this week that he has written official letter to SFO regarding the matter but declined to give more details.
"For your information we have already written official letter to SFO demanding key details before we proceed with the matter in our own ways and according to our laws." He told The Guardian on Sunday.
He insisted that his Bureau was still interested in ensuring that all those implicated in the scam are arrested and prosecuted before the court of law regardless of the agreement reached between SFO and BAE System.
According to details from the SFO's investigation, the actual price of the military radar sold to Tanzania at that time was $12million, but Tanzania paid about $40million - with the extra $28million going into the pockets of those involved, both government officials and private individuals.
Under the new deal between the SFO and BAE System announced last week, Tanzania may get a refund of $28 million (Sh37.8 billion)-an amount that could pay for 9,500 students to pursue their undergraduate studies for two years or provide 7.4 million families with treated mosquito nets at a cost of Sh5000 per net.
In 2006, the UK investigators established that BAE System had secretly paid a $12m commission into the Swiss bank account of Sailesh Vithlani in a deal that led to Tanzania, one of the world's poorest countries, buying a military radar system with only nominal justification.
The back-door payment to the Tanzanian middleman represented 30 percent of the contract value. Tanzania had to borrow to finance the deal, which critics said was unnecessarily and overpriced.
Chenge was forced to resign in 2008 after investigators discovered more than £500,000 in a Jersey bank account he controlled but he strongly denied the money had come from BAE. Early in 2008, the UK investigators said that Chenge had received $1.5m (Sh2.1bn) in kickbacks from the deal through a slush fund he set up in the UK island of Jersey.
According to a draft report written by the SFO and seen by The Guardian on Sunday, Chenge received payments through six credit transfers between June 19, 1997, and April 17, 1998, while he was serving as Attorney General.
The billions were paid to account No.59662999 owned by Franton Investment Limited through Bank Code No 204505 of Barclays Bank Plc, according to the draft report, a final version of which was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The SFO also established that Chenge owns Franton Investment, a registered company that appears to have been established primarily to enable the transfer of the dirty money. According to information provided by the Jersey Authority, the $1.5m was transferred from a Frankfurt branch of Barclays Bank to Chenge's account at a Jersey branch.
For example, the SFO established that on September 20, 1999, Chenge personally authorised the transfer of $1.2m from the Franton account to Royal Bank of Scotland International in Jersey. In May 1998, Chenge also authorised the transfer of $600,000 to an account owned and operated by Langley Investments Ltd.
The account was officially operated by former Central Bank Governor Dr Idrissa Rashidi.
The SFO report concluded that both Rashidi and Chenge were key figures in the corrupt radar deal, but they were acting with the full support of top officials from the third phase regime.
SOURCE: GUARDIAN ON SUNDAY
