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Laxity in vehicle inspection costs govt 12bn/-
By Felister Peter
23rd January 2010
BS given three months to ensure all car imports screened locally
Tanzania Bureau of Standards(TBS)
Failure by the Tanzania Bureau of Standards to ensure proper inspection of imported vehicles cost the government 12.16bn/- in lost revenue between 2002 and last year, according to the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee.
The committee had directed that the bureau conduct vehicle inspection in the country and not abroad but it was revealed in Dar es Salaam yesterday that the order is yet to be heeded.
This made the committee reject an Industries, Trade and Marketing ministry report presented before, saying it did not abide by recommendations by the House team.
Committee chairman John Cheyo said it was unfair for the government to get a mere $10 out of every $150 to $200 paid by Tanzanians for each vehicle inspected abroad.
"The committee is far from satisfied with your report. We are rejecting it because it is against our (committee) directives. The government has been losing a lot of revenue through the externalisation of foreign exchange," he pointed out.
He gave TBS a three-month ultimatum through the Industries ministry to work out the modalities of inspecting all imported vehicles locally.
"Before April this year, you should notify the committee on the steps you will have taken to ensure that vehicles are inspected in Tanzania," Cheyo stated.
He advised the government to buy modern vehicle inspecting gadgets and find a place where imported vehicles would be stationed for inspection by TBS officers.
He also blamed TBS for the flooding of the Tanzanian market with fake or substandard goods, especially electrical appliances, urging the bureau to allow importation of only those items that meet international standards.
Dr Shaban Mwinjaka, deputy permanent secretary in the Industries ministry, meanwhile told the committee that a ministerial team had been formed to investigate "the entire process of vehicle inspections made outside Tanzania".
He said so far there were seven companies doing vehicle inspection after one of them, Dubai-based Total Automotive Services, was deleted from the list following unsatisfactory performance.
Dr Mwinjaka said that a total of 93,606 vehicles destined for Tanzania have been inspected abroad since TBS launched the system in 2002, adding that from financial year 2008/2009, the government has been getting $25 out of every $100 to $150 paid for each vehicle inspected.
TBS director Charles Ekelege promised to work on the House committee's recommendations, adding that the bureau decided to conduct vehicle inspections abroad "to ensure the country did not turn into a dumping site for jalopies".
He gave the other reasons for the decision as controlling environmental pollution, reducing the incidence of accidents and checking rises in the cost of importing vehicle spare parts.
"We have now started to gain from these overseas inspections, as since last year we are getting $25. The government earned more than $5,000 last year from the exercise," he explained.
But Mpendae legislator Issa Kassim Issa (CCM) said there was no need for inspecting vehicles abroad because what the agents did was merely to fix TBS stickers on vehicles without making any worthiness tests.
"Vehicle inspecting machines cost only $65,000 each, which the government can afford. TBS has not been saying the truth on the number of imported vehicles, as statistics from the Tanzania Revenue Authority show that we import between 80,000 and 100,000 vehicles every year," he noted.
Kwela legislator Chrisant Mzindakaya underscored the need for all imported vehicles to undergo thorough inspection locally "for purposes of revenue monitoring and control".
Statistics from TBS show that 235 imported vehicles were inspected in financial year 2002/03. The figures given for subsequent years are: 2003/04 (1, 857), 2004/05 (13, 576), 2005/06 (14, 411), 2006/07 (14, 467), 2007/08 (14, 485) and 2008/09 (21,175).
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
By Felister Peter
23rd January 2010
Tanzania Bureau of Standards(TBS)
Failure by the Tanzania Bureau of Standards to ensure proper inspection of imported vehicles cost the government 12.16bn/- in lost revenue between 2002 and last year, according to the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee.
The committee had directed that the bureau conduct vehicle inspection in the country and not abroad but it was revealed in Dar es Salaam yesterday that the order is yet to be heeded.
This made the committee reject an Industries, Trade and Marketing ministry report presented before, saying it did not abide by recommendations by the House team.
Committee chairman John Cheyo said it was unfair for the government to get a mere $10 out of every $150 to $200 paid by Tanzanians for each vehicle inspected abroad.
"The committee is far from satisfied with your report. We are rejecting it because it is against our (committee) directives. The government has been losing a lot of revenue through the externalisation of foreign exchange," he pointed out.
He gave TBS a three-month ultimatum through the Industries ministry to work out the modalities of inspecting all imported vehicles locally.
"Before April this year, you should notify the committee on the steps you will have taken to ensure that vehicles are inspected in Tanzania," Cheyo stated.
He advised the government to buy modern vehicle inspecting gadgets and find a place where imported vehicles would be stationed for inspection by TBS officers.
He also blamed TBS for the flooding of the Tanzanian market with fake or substandard goods, especially electrical appliances, urging the bureau to allow importation of only those items that meet international standards.
Dr Shaban Mwinjaka, deputy permanent secretary in the Industries ministry, meanwhile told the committee that a ministerial team had been formed to investigate "the entire process of vehicle inspections made outside Tanzania".
He said so far there were seven companies doing vehicle inspection after one of them, Dubai-based Total Automotive Services, was deleted from the list following unsatisfactory performance.
Dr Mwinjaka said that a total of 93,606 vehicles destined for Tanzania have been inspected abroad since TBS launched the system in 2002, adding that from financial year 2008/2009, the government has been getting $25 out of every $100 to $150 paid for each vehicle inspected.
TBS director Charles Ekelege promised to work on the House committee's recommendations, adding that the bureau decided to conduct vehicle inspections abroad "to ensure the country did not turn into a dumping site for jalopies".
He gave the other reasons for the decision as controlling environmental pollution, reducing the incidence of accidents and checking rises in the cost of importing vehicle spare parts.
"We have now started to gain from these overseas inspections, as since last year we are getting $25. The government earned more than $5,000 last year from the exercise," he explained.
But Mpendae legislator Issa Kassim Issa (CCM) said there was no need for inspecting vehicles abroad because what the agents did was merely to fix TBS stickers on vehicles without making any worthiness tests.
"Vehicle inspecting machines cost only $65,000 each, which the government can afford. TBS has not been saying the truth on the number of imported vehicles, as statistics from the Tanzania Revenue Authority show that we import between 80,000 and 100,000 vehicles every year," he noted.
Kwela legislator Chrisant Mzindakaya underscored the need for all imported vehicles to undergo thorough inspection locally "for purposes of revenue monitoring and control".
Statistics from TBS show that 235 imported vehicles were inspected in financial year 2002/03. The figures given for subsequent years are: 2003/04 (1, 857), 2004/05 (13, 576), 2005/06 (14, 411), 2006/07 (14, 467), 2007/08 (14, 485) and 2008/09 (21,175).
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
