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- Feb 26, 2008
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By Samuel Kamndaya, Dodoma
Nearly Sh10 billion has vanished from the bank account of Tanzania Railway Limited (TRL), as the foreign concessioner, Rites of India, threatens to abandon the troubled company, Parliament was told yesterday.
The MP for Igalula, Ms Tatu Ntimizi, said she had been informed about the "mysterious disappearance" of at least Sh10 billion from TRL's bank account.
Ms Ntimizi, a former Lands minister, and member of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi, added: "I'm told that some Sh10 billion belonging to TRL has been stolen. Employees have not been paid their overtime allowances under the pretext that the company does not have money.
Who has stolen the money? Who else is capable of accessing TRL's accounts?� The revelation of the suspected massive theft is bound to intensify the public's concern over the company's performance and raise fresh questions on the capability of the Indian investor to manage the once prestigious railway firm.
Before the MP spoke in Parliament about the suspected TRL theft, The Citizen had been tipped off about the alleged "disappearance of a huge amount of money" from the company's bank account following the "sudden departure of some of key Indian managers".
However, efforts by The Citizen to get a comment from the TRL management on the alleged theft failed.
But sources at the TRL headquarters said that at least four Indians, who held senior positions at TRL, had left the country in recent months.
The last to leave is the Finance and Administrative Director. The sources said that the Indian managers had been replaced with their juniors in acting capacities.
"It's true that some of our bosses have left and their juniors appointed to act in those positions. But most of us are in the dark as to what is really going on here,"said an employee, on condition of anonymity.
Contacted for comment, the Dar es Salaam Special Police Zone Commander, Mr Suleiman Kova, said that as of yesterday, he had not received any report on theft at the TRL.
But in a separate interview in Dar es Salaam yesterday, on the frustrations and difficulties being experienced by the company, whose performance has remained below par, the TRL Chief Executive Officer, Mr Hundi Lal Chaudhary, indicated that they were ready to terminate the contract with the Government.
He said the contract could easily be annulled as there were provisions for that.
Rites was granted a concession to run the beleaguered railway company almost two years ago. The contract gives the Indian company 51 per cent of the shares in TRL, with complete autonomy to pick the management team.
Yesterday, the MPs said the alleged theft was further confirmation that Rites of India was taking the Tanzania Government for a ride. The MPs were commenting on the claims that a senior company official may have swindled the money.
Speaking in Parliament, the lawmakers called for a review of the Rites contract to allow the Tanzania Government, which owns a 49 per cent stake in TRL, to participate in the company�s management.
The Nzega MP, Mr Lucas Selelii, said the railway company was better off when it was under local management. "These are not investors.
They are here only to sabotage our economy," said Mr Selelii. The MPs urged the Government to overhaul the company's management before the situation gets worse. Ms Ntimizi said:
"It's normal these days to see the train run out of fuel while on a journey. The engines are faulty. Everything is in a bad state. They will just kill those of us who use the railway. This is serious, indeed." Her constituency takes up almost 75 per cent of the Central Corridor.
But TRL boss Chaudhary said that terminating the contract would be easy. He said his company was ready to leave.
"There is no need for Parliament to debate this contract. If the Government decides to terminate it, it's fine with us. However, the provisions on contract termination must be observed," he said.
Mr Chaudhary said the Government would have to give a three-month notice, stating its intention to end the contract.
However, it must also pay the foreign investor Sh54.37 billion in compensation for the various costs and expenditure by the company during the investment period and a further Sh56 million owed to a private security firm, Ultimate Security.
Mr Chaudhary said the ongoing public and parliamentary debate on TRL�s performance was giving the company a bad name.
"TRL has not failed to run the railways. The problem is here is lack of capital. TRL is being run by shares only from a single party to the contract and yet there are two."Rites of India, he added, owns 51 per cent of TRL and the Government of Tanzania, 49 per cent.
"Since the signing of the contract in 2007, TRL has been run with capital from Rites alone, but it appears that MPs and ordinary citizens are not aware of this," he said. When the company started operations, Mr Chaudhary recalled, the railways firm was in a very bad condition.
"There was no train plying between Dar es Salaam and Tanga or Kigoma and the central railway passenger train operated up to Dodoma only."
The then Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) had neither engines nor enough coaches for passenger trains.
He said that after Rites took the 51 per cent stake, TRL acquired 25, 73-class engines, and 23 coaches were leased from India to improve operations.
He challenged the MPs to ask the Government why it had failed to honour its part of the bargain instead of pointing a finger at Rites as the alleged cause of the problems afflicting TRL.
"The Government has not clearly informed the public about the contract. This is why we are being blamed. But the fact remains that the company was in a really bad condition before its privatisation,"he said.
He said Rites had shelved plans to pay the terminal benefits of the retired employees until the Government remits its share capital.
Additional reporting by Jackson Odoyo
source: TheCitizen Newspaper
Nearly Sh10 billion has vanished from the bank account of Tanzania Railway Limited (TRL), as the foreign concessioner, Rites of India, threatens to abandon the troubled company, Parliament was told yesterday.
The MP for Igalula, Ms Tatu Ntimizi, said she had been informed about the "mysterious disappearance" of at least Sh10 billion from TRL's bank account.
Ms Ntimizi, a former Lands minister, and member of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi, added: "I'm told that some Sh10 billion belonging to TRL has been stolen. Employees have not been paid their overtime allowances under the pretext that the company does not have money.
Who has stolen the money? Who else is capable of accessing TRL's accounts?� The revelation of the suspected massive theft is bound to intensify the public's concern over the company's performance and raise fresh questions on the capability of the Indian investor to manage the once prestigious railway firm.
Before the MP spoke in Parliament about the suspected TRL theft, The Citizen had been tipped off about the alleged "disappearance of a huge amount of money" from the company's bank account following the "sudden departure of some of key Indian managers".
However, efforts by The Citizen to get a comment from the TRL management on the alleged theft failed.
But sources at the TRL headquarters said that at least four Indians, who held senior positions at TRL, had left the country in recent months.
The last to leave is the Finance and Administrative Director. The sources said that the Indian managers had been replaced with their juniors in acting capacities.
"It's true that some of our bosses have left and their juniors appointed to act in those positions. But most of us are in the dark as to what is really going on here,"said an employee, on condition of anonymity.
Contacted for comment, the Dar es Salaam Special Police Zone Commander, Mr Suleiman Kova, said that as of yesterday, he had not received any report on theft at the TRL.
But in a separate interview in Dar es Salaam yesterday, on the frustrations and difficulties being experienced by the company, whose performance has remained below par, the TRL Chief Executive Officer, Mr Hundi Lal Chaudhary, indicated that they were ready to terminate the contract with the Government.
He said the contract could easily be annulled as there were provisions for that.
Rites was granted a concession to run the beleaguered railway company almost two years ago. The contract gives the Indian company 51 per cent of the shares in TRL, with complete autonomy to pick the management team.
Yesterday, the MPs said the alleged theft was further confirmation that Rites of India was taking the Tanzania Government for a ride. The MPs were commenting on the claims that a senior company official may have swindled the money.
Speaking in Parliament, the lawmakers called for a review of the Rites contract to allow the Tanzania Government, which owns a 49 per cent stake in TRL, to participate in the company�s management.
The Nzega MP, Mr Lucas Selelii, said the railway company was better off when it was under local management. "These are not investors.
They are here only to sabotage our economy," said Mr Selelii. The MPs urged the Government to overhaul the company's management before the situation gets worse. Ms Ntimizi said:
"It's normal these days to see the train run out of fuel while on a journey. The engines are faulty. Everything is in a bad state. They will just kill those of us who use the railway. This is serious, indeed." Her constituency takes up almost 75 per cent of the Central Corridor.
But TRL boss Chaudhary said that terminating the contract would be easy. He said his company was ready to leave.
"There is no need for Parliament to debate this contract. If the Government decides to terminate it, it's fine with us. However, the provisions on contract termination must be observed," he said.
Mr Chaudhary said the Government would have to give a three-month notice, stating its intention to end the contract.
However, it must also pay the foreign investor Sh54.37 billion in compensation for the various costs and expenditure by the company during the investment period and a further Sh56 million owed to a private security firm, Ultimate Security.
Mr Chaudhary said the ongoing public and parliamentary debate on TRL�s performance was giving the company a bad name.
"TRL has not failed to run the railways. The problem is here is lack of capital. TRL is being run by shares only from a single party to the contract and yet there are two."Rites of India, he added, owns 51 per cent of TRL and the Government of Tanzania, 49 per cent.
"Since the signing of the contract in 2007, TRL has been run with capital from Rites alone, but it appears that MPs and ordinary citizens are not aware of this," he said. When the company started operations, Mr Chaudhary recalled, the railways firm was in a very bad condition.
"There was no train plying between Dar es Salaam and Tanga or Kigoma and the central railway passenger train operated up to Dodoma only."
The then Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) had neither engines nor enough coaches for passenger trains.
He said that after Rites took the 51 per cent stake, TRL acquired 25, 73-class engines, and 23 coaches were leased from India to improve operations.
He challenged the MPs to ask the Government why it had failed to honour its part of the bargain instead of pointing a finger at Rites as the alleged cause of the problems afflicting TRL.
"The Government has not clearly informed the public about the contract. This is why we are being blamed. But the fact remains that the company was in a really bad condition before its privatisation,"he said.
He said Rites had shelved plans to pay the terminal benefits of the retired employees until the Government remits its share capital.
Additional reporting by Jackson Odoyo
source: TheCitizen Newspaper
