Zitto amesema tarehe 4 Julai chama chake (ACT-Wazalendo) kitafanya mkutano mkubwa maeneo ya Mwembeyanga jijini Dar es Salaam na Kuwataja wote walioficha mabilion Uswisi.
Zitto to disclose names behind ‘Swiss Billions'
After years of dilly-dallying and secrecy by the government on who owns much cash in offshore accounts, the Alliance for Change and Transparency (ACT-Wazalendo) party will finally reveal the names of those involved on July 4.
But Attorney General George Masaju who revealed in February that the report on the same matter was ready and that it would be tabled in Parliament chose to keep mum when The Citizen demanded to know when it would be presented as the House's life comes to an end on July 9.
President Jakaya Kikwete is expected to address the National Assembly on July 9 and later dissolve Parliament to pave the way for the country's General Election slated for October 25.
Yesterday, ACT-Wazalendo party leader Zitto Kabwe told a news conference, barely a day after he completed his tour of different regions, that he would provide a list of 99 bigwigs behind the Swiss Billions at a public rally.
Mr Kabwe and other party leaders had for the last three weeks been traversing various regions to popularize the party and the newly launched Tabora Declaration which seeks to revive the now defunct Arusha Declaration.
Addressing a news conference, Mr Kabwe said on July 4, the party will hold a huge political rally at Mwembeyanga grounds in Dar es Salaam where he would reveal the names of people with ofshore accounts in the and the amount of cash they had stashed.
The ACT-Wazalendo party's move comes at a time when a big cloud still hangs over the ‘Swiss Billions' even as Mr Masaju made a revelation that the report of a taskforce led by the Prevention and combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) director general Edward Hosea was ready.
Mr Hosea revealed in February, just few days after he was appointed AG, to succeed former AG, Judge Fredrick Werema, who resigned following the Tegeta escrow account scandal.
Addressing editors in Dar es Salaam at his maiden press conference, Mr Masaju said the final report would be tabled in Parliament any time. He stressed that Parliament would then debate the document and decide on the next course of action.
However, almost five months down the line, the report has been shelved and the government is still silent. At Parliament grounds in Dodoma, the AG appeared to run away from questions on the controversy surrounding the matter. When asked by The Citizen to give any statement on the promise he made before editors in February, the AG said: "I cannot comment on that issue because everything here depends on Parliament's schedule.
The Citizen further sought comment from Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Job Ndugai concerning the ‘Swiss Billions' report, but MrNdugai said his office was yet to receive it.
"We understand this matter was being pushed by the former Kigoma North MP, but as of today the government is yet to bring the report to the office of the Speaker and I think you should contact the AG,'' he said.
The AG's revelation came in the wake of the release of leaked data in February that indicated that 99 Tanzanians wired $114 million (Sh205 billion) to HSBC Bank in Switzerland from 2006 to 2007. According to the data, which was independently verified by the US-based watchdog International Consortium for Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), these Tanzanians together operated 286 bank accounts.
Sources close to government confided to The Citizen that the list of 99 Tanzanians with offshore accounts does not include any politician.
"Majority of them are Tanzanians of Indian origin," said the source.
The government's investigations were prompted by a private motion by the current ACT-Wazalendo party leader who was the Kigoma North MP then.
Mr Kabwe in 2012 asked the government to investigate public sector corruption and establish who might be hiding millions of dollars in foreign bank accounts. At a news conference in Dar es Salaam yesterday, the ACT-Wazalendo party leader said: "We expect to hold a rally to popularise our party to Dar es Salaam residents and in that meeting I will put public the report on Swiss Billions. This is after the government failed to put to the public domain a report which reveals the names who have stashed away billions of shillings abroad,'' he said.
Source: The Citizen
