The Radar Scandal: Investigation & Progress

[Icadon]

Unajua kuna article moja nilisoma nadhani ilikuwa ni ya Mh. Mramba inasema kuwa tangu radr imenunuliwa imeongeza idadi ya watalii na ndege zinazotua viwanja vya Tanzania na zinazokatiza kwenye Airspace ya Tanzania.

 

[DAR si LAMU]

Unajua kuna article moja nilisoma nadhani ilikuwa ni ya Mh. Mramba inasema kuwa tangu radr imenunuliwa imeongeza idadi ya watalii na ndege zinazotua viwanja vya Tanzania na zinazokatiza kwenye Airspace ya Tanzania.

huyo mzee anajua kuongea vitu off point kichizi....wakati mwingine unajiuliza...yuko dunia gani.

hivi hiyo unaweza ukasema ndio sababu?kwahiyo tununue rada nyingine ili tupate watalii wengi zaidi?

akawaambie watoto wa chekechea maneno hayo!

 

[Icadon]

Its an old article but I thought I would share with everyone

About two years after the controversial radar was installed at the Dar es Salaam International Airport to guide all aircraft flying over the entire Tanzanian airspace, a success story has come up with increased flights to Tanzania. The new radar which is fitted with modern navigational equipment capable to monitor aircraft movements over Tanzania's airspace and some parts of eastern, central and southern Africa drew diplomatic row between Tanzania and the United Kingdom, the manufacturer and seller of the radar.



When Tanzania government planned to purchase the radar way back in 1995, a row of words erupted from the parliament, opposing the purchase of the $ 40 million worth air navigation equipment while the country has been sinking in an abyss of abject poverty and ignorance. Parliamentarians charged that the radar was too expensive for a country like Tanzania whose aircraft landing at the four international airports averaged between two and four a day, or even less.

Contrary to what many people were thinking, things have changed after the radar was purchased and installed at the Dar es Salaam International Airport. More aircraft have been attracted to land and re-fuel at the airport and many airline companies are looking to launch schedule and charter flights to Tanzania.

Travel agents and tour operators in Tanzania are now supporting the government's move to purchase such an expensive navigational system, which to them, is a blessing because of increased flights between Tanzanian airports and other parts of the world. Tanzanian minister for Finance Mr. Basil Mramba said mid-this week that the new radar has boosted Tanzania's airspace with more aircraft crossing over its territorial skies and some re-fuel at the international airports.


"Tanzania's airspace is now more safer with more aircraft flying during all weather conditions and no more fears of airspace collision", he said.

Mr. Mramba said that in the past years before installation of the new radar, some aircraft escaped flying over Tanzania's airspace in fear of collision as a result of bad weather and poor navigational support from the ground.? Big, intercontinental aircraft depended their own, installed landing navigational aid to touch down at Tanzanian airports.

The transport bulletin published this week by Tanzania's ministry of Communications and Transport said that airline business in Tanzania is very small, but with positive growth in near future.

Only two local airlines - Precisionair Services Limited and Air Tanzania Company Limited operate daily domestic flights between Tanzanian towns. British Airways, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Swiss Air are the only European airlines operating between Tanzania and big European cities with connections to USA, Japan and Hong Kong. Major European airlines including Sabena (Belgium), Air France, Alitalia, SAS and Lufthansa pulled out their flights from Tanzania over the past ten years.

The transport bulletin said that because of safe airspace, several airlines including Emirates, Gulf Air, Egyptian Air, Ethiopian Airlines, South African Airways, Air India and Kenya Airways are operating comfortably while other international airlines are inquiring Tanzania's destination.

As an indication of performance, there were 123,816 aircraft movements between Tanzanian airports and other regional and international airports with 1.4 million passengers recorded in 2002, the bulletin noted. Tanzania has embarked on gradual liberalization of its international air transport market through reviewing its Bilateral Air Services Agreements (BASA). Notably, Tanzania was the first African state to sign an "Open Skies" agreement with the United States in 2000, the bulletin said.

Former US president Mr. Bill Clinton and Tanzanian president Mr. Benjamin Mkapa observed the signing of the Open Skies agreement in Arusha, northern Tanzania on August 28, 2000 when Mr. Clinton visited Tanzania.

The new radar falls under a national program to upgrade navigational systems at the four international airports - Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro in the north, Mwanza in the west and Zanzibar Island in the Indian Ocean, Civil Aviation officials claimed.

The purchase of the new radar has greatly improved the profile of air travel in Tanzania, though once opposed by many policy-makers. Opposing row took an international angle when senior British parliamentarians opposed their government's willingness to sell the radar to a poor country, Tanzania.

Led by Madam Claire Short, the former British Secretary of State for International Development, the parliamentarians threatened to block a six-year aid package to Tanzania worth $ 67.5 million each year, but the British Prime Minister Mr. Tony Blair backed Tanzania's decision.

Madam Short visited Tanzania at the end of 2001 to meet top government officials to discuss cooperation issues, including the controversial radar which most British parliamentarians termed to be of military interests. President Benjamin Mkapa defended the purchase of the radar from BAE Systems of the United Kingdom.

Tanzania has 62 airports, but only four out of the total can accommodate big aircraft the size of Boeing 737. The rest can accommodate light aircraft, and are scattered mostly inside tourist sites and some are privately owned.

By Apolinari Tairo
eTN Tanzania


Travelvideo.TV - your news source for the travel and tourism industry.

 

[Kazi Ndiyo Kipimo Cha Utu]

Its an old article but I thought I would share with everyone

About two years after the controversial radar was installed at the Dar es Salaam International Airport to guide all aircraft flying over the entire Tanzanian airspace, a success story has come up with increased flights to Tanzania. The new radar which is fitted with modern navigational equipment capable to monitor aircraft movements over Tanzania's airspace and some parts of eastern, central and southern Africa drew diplomatic row between Tanzania and the United Kingdom, the manufacturer and seller of the radar.



When Tanzania government planned to purchase the radar way back in 1995, a row of words erupted from the parliament, opposing the purchase of the $ 40 million worth air navigation equipment while the country has been sinking in an abyss of abject poverty and ignorance. Parliamentarians charged that the radar was too expensive for a country like Tanzania whose aircraft landing at the four international airports averaged between two and four a day, or even less.

Contrary to what many people were thinking, things have changed after the radar was purchased and installed at the Dar es Salaam International Airport. More aircraft have been attracted to land and re-fuel at the airport and many airline companies are looking to launch schedule and charter flights to Tanzania.

Travel agents and tour operators in Tanzania are now supporting the government's move to purchase such an expensive navigational system, which to them, is a blessing because of increased flights between Tanzanian airports and other parts of the world. Tanzanian minister for Finance Mr. Basil Mramba said mid-this week that the new radar has boosted Tanzania's airspace with more aircraft crossing over its territorial skies and some re-fuel at the international airports.


"Tanzania's airspace is now more safer with more aircraft flying during all weather conditions and no more fears of airspace collision", he said.

Mr. Mramba said that in the past years before installation of the new radar, some aircraft escaped flying over Tanzania's airspace in fear of collision as a result of bad weather and poor navigational support from the ground.? Big, intercontinental aircraft depended their own, installed landing navigational aid to touch down at Tanzanian airports.

The transport bulletin published this week by Tanzania's ministry of Communications and Transport said that airline business in Tanzania is very small, but with positive growth in near future.

Only two local airlines - Precisionair Services Limited and Air Tanzania Company Limited operate daily domestic flights between Tanzanian towns. British Airways, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Swiss Air are the only European airlines operating between Tanzania and big European cities with connections to USA, Japan and Hong Kong. Major European airlines including Sabena (Belgium), Air France, Alitalia, SAS and Lufthansa pulled out their flights from Tanzania over the past ten years.

The transport bulletin said that because of safe airspace, several airlines including Emirates, Gulf Air, Egyptian Air, Ethiopian Airlines, South African Airways, Air India and Kenya Airways are operating comfortably while other international airlines are inquiring Tanzania's destination.

As an indication of performance, there were 123,816 aircraft movements between Tanzanian airports and other regional and international airports with 1.4 million passengers recorded in 2002, the bulletin noted. Tanzania has embarked on gradual liberalization of its international air transport market through reviewing its Bilateral Air Services Agreements (BASA). Notably, Tanzania was the first African state to sign an "Open Skies" agreement with the United States in 2000, the bulletin said.

Former US president Mr. Bill Clinton and Tanzanian president Mr. Benjamin Mkapa observed the signing of the Open Skies agreement in Arusha, northern Tanzania on August 28, 2000 when Mr. Clinton visited Tanzania.

The new radar falls under a national program to upgrade navigational systems at the four international airports - Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro in the north, Mwanza in the west and Zanzibar Island in the Indian Ocean, Civil Aviation officials claimed.

The purchase of the new radar has greatly improved the profile of air travel in Tanzania, though once opposed by many policy-makers. Opposing row took an international angle when senior British parliamentarians opposed their government's willingness to sell the radar to a poor country, Tanzania.

Led by Madam Claire Short, the former British Secretary of State for International Development, the parliamentarians threatened to block a six-year aid package to Tanzania worth $ 67.5 million each year, but the British Prime Minister Mr. Tony Blair backed Tanzania's decision.

Madam Short visited Tanzania at the end of 2001 to meet top government officials to discuss cooperation issues, including the controversial radar which most British parliamentarians termed to be of military interests. President Benjamin Mkapa defended the purchase of the radar from BAE Systems of the United Kingdom.

Tanzania has 62 airports, but only four out of the total can accommodate big aircraft the size of Boeing 737. The rest can accommodate light aircraft, and are scattered mostly inside tourist sites and some are privately owned.

By Apolinari Tairo
eTN Tanzania


Travelvideo.TV - your news source for the travel and tourism industry.

Hii walitaka watanzania waamini Hivyo,Kama mnakumbuka kipande cha pili cha radar hakikuweza kununuliwa tena na kile ambacho kilinunuliwa kisingeweza kuwa effective zaidi bila ya yule mwenza Au ni mimi nimeelewa vinginevyo,na kama ni hivyo sasa Hilo pato limeongezekanaje wakati hata radar system haipo kamili baada ya kushindwa kununua kipande cha pili cha radar hiyo?

 

[qwiqwi]

increase in air traffic can only be attributed to all factors but the radar thing.i believe that, this is yet another proof that, the ministers involved are still willing too spin and defend their grave blunders if not corrupt practices.

hii ndiyo hasara ya kuwa na chama kimoja chenye nguvu kupindukia ndani ya bunge, mathan kungekuwa na strong opposition hawa watu wangekimbia nchi - bongo pasingekalika.

lakini kwa hali ilivyo sasa, sioni kigogo yoyote kuwa na wasi wasi wa maisha yake kwa uhalifu wanaowafanyia watanzania.

😡

 

[BAK]

Let's wait and see if PCB would be able to deal with this scandal to the satisfaction of Tanzanians.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
PCB now trails radar deal: Several senior government officials questioned

LET`S GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS

The antennae hovering above signals the presence of the 41bn/- air traffic control radar system located inside this simple-looking building at Julius Nyerere Airport in Dar es Salaam. According to our sources, the investigation currently being conducted into the controversial radar purchase deal, by PCB director Edward Hosea (right) and his boys, was expressly ordered by President Kikwete himself.

MBARAKA ISLAM
Dar es Salaam

THE Prevention of Corruption Bureau is conducting an official investigation into the controversial 2002 radar deal in which illegal kickbacks amounting to $12m (approx. 15bn/-) are alleged to have been secretly paid out to various high-ranking Tanzanian government officials, THISDAY can now reveal.

According to sources close to the investigation, the PCB has already questioned a number of government officials who facilitated the $41m deal.

The PCB director general, Edward Hosea, declined to name the officials being probed but confirmed that the anti-corruption watchdog was making headway in its investigation of the deal.

’’We will let you know when we complete our investigations,’’ Hosea said when contacted by THISDAY for comment on the probe.

Although the PCB chief declined to offer any details regarding the ongoing investigation, government sources have told THISDAY that the bureau was acting on instructions from President Jakaya Kikwete himself.

President Kikwete said last January that Tanzania would lodge a formal claim against the UK if it is found that too much money was paid for the military air defence and traffic control system, bought from British arms manufacturer BAE Systems Plc.

Several independent sources have revealed that PCB investigators have been focussing on several high-ranking government officials involved in the 2002 purchase of the radar, which is said to have been overpriced.

The sources told THISDAY that the investigators have since February been questioning the officials from ’’key government ministries and departments.’’

It is understood that the PCB investigation is being conducted parallel to an international probe by Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over the controversial deal.

British detectives are investigating BAE Systems for suspected corruption in the deal with the Tanzanian government, where commissions of more than 29 per cent of the deal may have been secretly paid to a Swiss bank account.

Investigators from the SFO have also questioned a number of people in Tanzania who were involved in the suspect deal.

They include Sailesh Vithlani, a 42-year-old local businessman said to have been the middleman behind the radar deal and several other controversial government contracts.

The same man, working with other businessmen and retired senior civil servants in Dar es Salaam, is believed to have been behind a series of other dodgy deals, including the supply of the G550 Special Purpose 18-seater presidential jet for a staggering $40m (approx. 50bn/-).

The purchase of the presidential plane, the longest-range business jet in the world, sparked widespread criticism against the third phase government of former president Benjamin Mkapa.

In the case of the controversial radar deal, it is understood that the Plessey Commander fighter control system was assembled by a BAE subsidiary on the Isle of Wight in Britain.

The transaction has been dogged by corruption accusations throughout. In 1995, when it was first mooted, the Bank of Tanzania refused to pledge the country’s gold reserves to cover the cost, and the plan was dropped.

After the death of the Father of the Nation, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, the deal was revived with the offer of a loan from Barclays Bank.

Critics say the radar system, with its sophisticated anti-jamming devices, was unnecessary and wildly expensive. It is strongly argued that a modest civil air traffic control system, more appropriate for Tanzania’s needs, could have been bought for a quarter of the price.

 

[Ibrah]

DAR si LAMU, Nadhani Mheshimiwa Mramba is among the Senior Minister in JK's government! Nakumbuka amekuwa Waziri tangu enzi za JK Senior(Mwalimu Nyerere!), nadhani wakati huo Rais JK alikuwa ni Katibu wa chama kama si Singida basi Unguja kwa hiyo ni mtu muhimu kuliko mawaziri waote ukiondo Kingunge-N Mwiru na JJ Mungai. Ni Mzee Mwinyi tu ndiye aliyemtema wakati wa awamu ya pili (nadhani kwa kuwa alipigwa chini Ubunge wa Rombo!). Huyu Mheshimiwa nadhani keshachoka ni vile tu viongozi wetu wanabebana. Si wajua ule msemo; " Mbwa mzee hafundishwi (hafundishiki) mbinu mpay"!

 

[FairPlayer]

Radar zisaidie ndege zake za precision air

FD

 

[Mzee Mwanakijiji]

mazingaombwe ya hali ya juu! wanachosema ni kuwa kwa vile kuna ongezeko la aina fulani la watalii n.k basi rushwa haikutumika!!! so Watanzania tuwasamehe!!

 

[Ole]

Brought by Bubu ataka Kusema

THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam

THE Prevention of Corruption Bureau (PCB) is now focussing on a number of leading local politicians and high-ranking public officials as it continues its investigation into the controversial $41m (approx. 52bn/-) radar deal, it has been learnt.

THISDAY can reveal that PCB agents are in the process of probing several key ministries and government departments that were directly involved in the 2002 transaction, which has drawn much ire both here at home and in Britain where it originated.

Our sources say investigators from the Bureau have set their sights on various officials in the Ministry of Infrastructure Development (formerly Ministry of Communications and Transport), the Ministry of Defence and National Service, and the Ministry of Finance, all with links to the deal.

Other government departments connected to the transaction, including the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA), are also being targeted in the probe. Furthermore, sources close to the investigation say key politicians who pushed through the controversial deal during President Benjamin Mkapa’s administration are being scrutinized as part and parcel of the probe.

Other government officials are being questioned in their roles as technical experts, all in a bid to try and establish why the purchase of the overpriced radar was approved. It is understood that the technical experts approached in the ongoing PCB investigation are from the three government ministries and the TCAA.

’’The military experts and those from TCAA are being questioned for their key role in the dealsome of them did travel to the UK to inspect the radar and ascertain its suitability, before it was eventually bought by the government,’’ said one source. He added: ’’On the other hand, there are clearly some politicians who pressured the technical experts to endorse the radar, and made the controversial payment for the equipment.’’

The Plessey Commander military air defence and control system was assembled by a subsidiary of BAE Systems Plc on the Isle of Wight, in Britain.
PCB director general Edward Hosea confirmed to THISDAY earlier this week that the anti-corruption watchdog was officially investigating the radar deal.

He, however, declined to give details about the ongoing investigation, or to name any of the individuals being investigated. The PCB boss maintained that the investigation is making good progress and pledged to release detailed information when it is concluded.

Government officials say investigation into the controversial radar deal was expressly ordered by President Jakaya Kikwete. It is alleged that several top officials in the Tanzanian government received part of the illegal $12m (approx. 15bn/-) worth of kickbacks allegedly paid by BAE Systems Plc.

A paper trail being followed by investigators from Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) shows that the commissions were secretly deposited in a Swiss bank account. The SFO has long been investigating the radar deal plus other defence contracts between BAE Systems and the governments of various foreign countries.

British investigators also conducted their probe on Tanzanian soil and questioned a number of people in the country connected to the deal. They include local businessman Sailesh Vithlani (42), who is alleged to have been the main middleman behind the deal.

Vithlani is reported to be closely working with several influential local business partners, including top government leaders (current and retired) from the Ministry of Defence and National Service, the Ministry of Finance, and elsewhere. The same businessman is alleged to have also benefited from a number of other multi-million dollar government contracts, such as the supply of the $40m Gulfstream presidential jet, and other deals involving supplies of military equipment.

The radar system, with its sophisticated anti-jamming devices, has been widely criticized as being quite unnecessary, as well as wildly expensive. President Kikwete has already stated Tanzania’s intention to lodge a formal claim against the UK if it is indeed found that too much money was paid for the radar.

Experts say the government could have bought a much more modest civil air traffic control system, more appropriate to the country’s needs, for just a quarter of the price doled out to purchase the controversial radar.

 

[BAK]

INVESTIGATIONS INTO $41M RADAR DEAL: Swiss bank accounts now under probe

$12m paid into secret Swiss account to sweeten radar deal
THISDAY REPORTER and Agencies
Dar es Salaam

THE Swiss federal prosecutor’s office has opened an official investigation into allegations of corruption surrounding arms deals by the British firm BAE Systems, including the controversial $41m radar deal involving the Tanzanian government.

Investigators believe that around $12m (approx. 15bn/-) in illegal kickbacks were paid out through a Swiss bank account to several politicians and high-ranking government officials in Tanzania to approve the radar deal in 2004.

A spokeswoman for the Swiss federal prosecutor’s office in Bern said the investigation concerns suspicions of money laundering involving the aerospace company but declined to give further details so as not to prejudice the inquiry.

Ms Jeannette Balmer was quoted yesterday by latest media reports from Switzerland as saying that the investigation was the result of a report prosecutors received from the Swiss money laundering authority.

She revealed that Britain’s Serious Fraud Office, which has been investigating the Tanzanian radar deal, has officially asked Switzerland for legal assistance in its probe.

Ms Balmer said her office was currently considering requests from the SFO for legal assistance into possible BAE bribes in the Tanzanian radar deal.

Investigations by THISDAY have uncovered that a British citizen, Mr Shailesh Vithlani, who grew up in Tanzania, was the agent behind the radar deal.

An obscure company registered in Mwanza Region, Merlin International Limited, which is co-owned by Mr Vithlani and prominent Dar es Salaam businessman Tanil Somaiya, was used as the local agent for BAE Systems in the sale of the overpriced radar to Tanzania.

Mr Vithlani is alleged to have arranged for $12m to be secretly paid by the UK arms company into a secret Swiss bank account in return for the purchase by the Tanzanian government of the military radar.

The Swiss federal prosecutor’s office said yesterday it had yet to decide whether to pass on bank documents relating to the Tanzanian radar deal to British authorities.

The British government in December called off an inquiry into another multi-billion dollar arms deal between BAE Systems and Saudi Arabia, saying it was acting to protect national security and British jobs.

Prime Minister Tony Blair told lawmakers that continuing the SFO investigation ’’would do enormous damage to our relationship with Saudi Arabia’’, which, he said, was strategically important.

The SFO had been investigating allegations that BAE ran a million-million dollar ’’slush fund’’ offering sweeteners to Saudi officials, reportedly via Swiss bank accounts, in return for lucrative contracts as part of the Al-Yamamah arms deal in the 1980s. BAE has denied any wrongdoing.

 

[Mkandara]

Uongo mwingine hauna kipimo hata kidogo!
Hawa viongozi kudai kwamba toka rada mpya iwekwe tumekuwa na ndege nyingi zaidi ni Uongo mkubwa sana maanake haiwezi kabisa kufiikia record tuliyokuwa nayo baada ya uwanja huo huo kujengwa mwa ka 1982 kwani kila ndege ya Ulaya ilikuwa ikitua Dar. wakati huo mashirika mengi yakiwa bado hai. Toka Air Italia, Sabena, SAS, Lufthansa, KIA, Air India - to name the few toka nje zilikuwa miongozi mwa ndege zinazotua leo tena kila siku.

Kwa hiyo wasije sahau kwamba kizazi kile bado kipo na kumbukumbu bado tunayo!

 

[BAK]

As radar probe heads into final stretch: UK investigators due to fly into Dar

THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam

A TEAM of British investigators is expected to arrive in Dar es Salaam this month to assist local authorities in wrapping up investigations into graft allegations related to the $41m (52bn/-) military radar deal.

Well-placed sources have confirmed to THISDAY that investigators from Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) are set to fly into the country ’’probably next week,’’ to offer more clues on the matter.

The SFO has been conducting its own investigation into claims that Britain’s BAE Systems company bribed some Tanzanian officials to accept their offer to sell the allegedly overpriced air traffic and control system to the government in 2001.

There have been reports that some $12m (15bn/-) in illegal kickbacks were paid to Tanzanian government officials through a secret Swiss bank account to facilitate the deal.

Here at home, THISDAY is reliably told that the Prevention of Corruption Bureau (PCB) has also been investigating the radar deal for some time now, targeting several politicians and senior government officials who were involved in the transaction.

Key figures in the Ministry of Defence and National Service, Ministry of Infrastructure Development (formerly Ministry of Communications and Transport), Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) and elsewhere have already been questioned by PCB investigators over the matter.

And a top government official told THISDAY over the weekend that the Bureau would soon make a ’’very big announcement’’ concerning the ongoing investigation.

PCB director-general Edward Hosea was not immediately available to comment on the scheduled arrival of the British investigators.

However, it will not be the first time that the UK detectives have visited Tanzania in connection with the same case.

THISDAY has already reported this week that the Swiss federal prosecutor’s office has also opened an official investigation into allegations of corruption surrounding various arms deals by BAE Systems � involving other countries along with Tanzania.

It is understood that the British investigators probing the Tanzanian radar deal have officially asked Switzerland for legal assistance in its probe. And the Swiss federal prosecutor’s office said it had yet to decide whether to pass on bank documents relating to the deal to the British authorities.

It has been suggested that a Swiss bank account was used to pay out possible bribes in connection with the radar deal.

A local businessman with British citizenship, Shailesh Vithlani, was the agent behind the radar deal and many other military contracts with the Tanzanian government. Our sources say both Vithlani and his business partner Tanil Somaiya - co-owners of Dar es Salaam-based firm Merlin International Limited � have already been questioned by the British investigators over the alleged bribes to Tanzanian government officials.

Criticism of the Tanzanian radar deal has been extensive both here at home and in Britain, with Britain’s former Secretary for International Development, Ms Clare Short, amongst its sharpest critics. She has described the radar sold to Tanzania as ’’useless’’ and dismissed the entire transaction as ’’scandalous’’ and ’’squalid’’, even accusing UK Prime Minister Tony Blair of pushing it through.

Ms Short, who is now an independent MP, has consistently argued that Tanzania could have paid much less for similar equipment. ’’I believe that all the parties involved in this deal should be deeply ashamed,’’ she was quoted as saying in one of the sessions of the British House of Commons.

She said the deal was ’’useless and hostile to the interests of Tanzania’’, and had been opposed by senior British cabinet members including Chancellor Gordon Brown. She further alleged that Barclays Bank had ’’colluded’’ with the British government in loaning Tanzania the money, but lying to the World Bank about the type and size of the loan.

Another British MP, Mr Andrew Mitchell, said BAE had used ’’ageing technology’’ and noted that the system was ’’not adequate and too expensive.’’ He said the deal had ’’all the warning signs of impropriety - a vastly inflated price, an unsuitable product and unorthodox financing.’’

 

[Mzee Mwanakijiji]

Big announcement... will go like this "katika mchakato mzima wa ununuzi wa rada hakukuwa na rushwa yoyote. Hilo ni kweli licha ya ukiukwaji wa taratibu ndogondogo za hapa na pale"!! mjadala unafungwa!

 

[BAK]

Hilo linawezekana kabisa. Si tumeona jinsi Hosea wa PCB alivyobofoa kwenye Richmonduli.

 

[BAK]

Suspect 52bn/- radar deal: At last, the stage is set for prosecution


THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam

INVESTIGATIONS now proceeding on several fronts into corruption allegations linked to the controversial $41m (approx. 52bn/-) military radar deal are now headed for a much-awaited climax, following the disclosure of imminent plans to bring to book several people already incriminated.

Both Britain and Switzerland are investigating the 2002 deal, parallel to a separate probe here at home on the same transaction being conducted by the government’s anti-corruption watchdog � the Prevention of Corruption Bureau (PCB).

This means that a number of key Tanzanian suspects linked to the transaction may face trial in a foreign jurisdiction, according to THISDAY’s impeccable sources.

Our sources have already informed us exclusively that investigators from Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) are expected to arrive in the country any time soon to help wrap up the local investigation.

And we are now told that one of the main items on the agenda of the consultations between PCB officials and the British investigators will be how to proceed with the looming prosecution of suspects already conclusively implicated in the deal.

’’Investigators from Britain and Tanzania will together discuss the prosecution details and look into matters concerned with jurisdiction,’’ said a senior government official monitoring the ongoing probe.

There are suggestions that the corruption prosecutions relating to the radar deal might be launched in Dar es Salaam, London or Switzerland.

Britain is the home of the manufacturers of the military radar, BAE Systems Plc, while Switzerland has jurisdiction over the bank that was allegedly used to pay out bribes to Tanzanian officials to facilitate the transaction.

The government source explained that if it is decided that the prosecutions be launched outside Tanzania, local investigators would be expected to cooperate with their foreign counterparts in filing extradition proceedings before Tanzanian courts.?
’’But if the case is launched in Dar es Salaam, then it’s possible that the PCB will soon send its file to the Director of Public Prosecutions for consent to open prosecution proceedings,’’ the source said.
The investigations centre around allegations that BAE Systems paid a middleman up to $12m (approx. 15bn/-) to clinch the radar system order in Tanzania. The funds were allegedly paid to local businessman Sailesh Vithlani via a money transfer to a Swiss bank account.

It has been pointed out that this payment represents about 30 per cent of the total value of the contract, which is contrary to internationally acceptable levels of commissions for military deals.

Reports say as part of their own probe, investigators from the London-based SFO have already been to Dar es Salaam to interview potential suspects and witnesses. They include Vithlani, who holds a British passport but grew up in Mwanza Region, and currently co-owns a local company called Merlin International Limited along with key business partner Tanil Somaiya.

The little-known company has already been linked to a number of other ultra-large government contracts, with Vithlani reliably named as the agent behind the purchase of the $40m (50.7bn/-) Gulfstream jet supplied to former president Benjamin Mkapa’s government in 2002.

He has also been recently linked to a similarly-controversial 93.5bn/- military trucks deal for the Tanzanian army, as well as the supply of military helicopters and other military hardware to Tanzania.

Contacted for comment this week, PCB director general Edward Hosea declined to offer any details on the latest developments in the radar deal probe, apart from saying his office would soon issue a status statement.

However, THISDAY is reliably told that the PCB investigation has so far targeted several prominent politicians and senior government officials who were involved in the transaction. They include key figures in the Ministry of Defence and National Service and the Ministry of Infrastructure Development (formerly Ministry of Communications and Transport).

Officials in the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) and elsewhere have also been interviewed by PCB investigators over the radar deal, according to our sources.

 

[Mpaka Kieleweke]

What are u expecting from the PCB investigations, nothing new from them it will be like RICH -MAN FROM MONDULI report.
Also they failed to make folloups on Ndesamburos scandal that wabunge wamehongwa this ws due to the ushahidi available.
Lets talk about other issues and not about these PCB "Public Corruption Bureau:

 

[Kalamu]

What are u expecting from the PCB investigations, nothing new from them it will be like RICH -MAN FROM MONDULI report.
Also they failed to make folloups on Ndesamburos scandal that wabunge wamehongwa this ws due to the ushahidi available.
Lets talk about other issues and not about these PCB "Public Corruption Bureau:

For this, I will fully support an external adjudication.

Kama kweli kesi hii itakuwepo, kwa mara ya kwanza kabisa tutaanza kujua (nadhani) mambo yanavyoendeshwa katika wizara na mipango ya rushwa katika mikataba.

Admin. kama sio tatizo, ninaomba hii taarifa iunganishwe na ule mjadala wa rada ambao tayari umo humu JF. Ni ombi tu, kama inawezekana.

 

[Dua]

Blair role in SA arms contract

By Martin Plaut
BBC News Africa analyst

Tony Blair may have some explaining to do over a major arms deal with South Africa on the last leg of his week-long Africa tour.

One awkward question which may not be on Mr Blair's agenda during this week's visit to South Africa will be his role in helping a leading British arms supplier to win a multi-million dollar arms contract.

The deal, signed by BAE, was part of a much larger arms procurement programme, with contracts signed by a range of European companies. Some of these contracts have become bogged down in controversy.

And more recently it has also been alleged that BAE itself paid what have been termed "commissions" to ensure that it won the contract. While there is no suggestion that the prime minister knew of or participated in any wrongdoing, his role in supporting the BAE bid has never been fully explained.

Largest deal

In 1999, the year in which the arms deal was signed, Tony Blair visited South Africa twice. According to the Foreign Office this was in January and November. Since then Mr Blair has only been in South Africa once, in February 2006. Back in 1999 the South African press carried very little that even hinted that an arms contract was part of the reason Mr Blair visited the country.

The deal was the largest South Africa had ever concluded, re-arming the country after the end of the arms embargo that had been in place during the apartheid years. It was worth $4.8bn and included the purchase of corvettes, submarines, light utility helicopters, lead-in fighter trainers and advanced light fighter aircraft.

The BAE share of the arms procurement contract was to supply 24 Hawk advanced jet trainer aircraft, while Swedish manufacturer Saab, which is part-owned by BAE Systems, was to supply 28 Gripen fighter planes.
Bribe allegations

The entire arms deal was questioned by critics when it was being drawn up. They argued that South Africa, as a young democracy, had more pressing problems. These concerns were swept aside by the ANC government. But soon other concerns arose. The overall deal soon became bogged down in controversy, with allegations that bribes had been paid to win the contracts which involved a number of European suppliers.

The former ANC chief whip, Tony Yengeni, was one of the first in the spotlight after he started driving around Cape Town in his state-of-the-art dark green Mercedes Benz ML320 4x4 with its tinted windows and plush beige upholstery. In 2004, Yengeni was convicted of defrauding parliament by accepted a discount on the car. He was jailed in August 2006 but was released on parole after completing just five months of the four-year sentence.

Then Schabir Shaik, financial adviser to the South African deputy president, Jacob Zuma, was jailed for 15 years for soliciting a bribe for Mr Zuma from Thales.

And in June 2005 Mr Zuma was sacked from his position as deputy president, while further charges against him continue to be investigated by the South African authorities. Mr Zuma has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
Payments alleged

None of these convictions or allegations involved BAE.

But now it has been reported that the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has asked its South African counterpart, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), to help it track down more than $139m in "commissions", allegedly paid by BAE to eight South African businesses and a political adviser.


The NPA has also been probing the deal and confirmed that a request had been received, "which was being processed". These questions were pursued at the BAE AGM earlier this month, when a former ANC member of parliament, Andrew Feinstein, used the meeting to raise a series of questions.

He asked the BAE chairman Dick Oliver: "Give this meeting an assurance that not one penny found its way into the hands of one South African official or politician. "One senior ANC executive committee member told me the 1999 election campaign was funded from the proceeds of the arms sale."

Mr Oliver declined to comment on Feinstein's specific allegations, saying an SFO investigation into similar claims was ongoing. He added: "You can be assured all information is being passed and help is being offered in a fulsome way."

Mbeki 'furious'

One other area that has remained controversial is the number of jobs that the deal has created for South Africa. It was claimed in 1999 that it would produce 65,000 jobs, but so far only a fraction of those have appeared.

There have also been reports that South African President Thabo Mbeki is furious that while an investigation into the BAE arms deal with Saudi Arabia was ended after the attorney general decided that it was "not in the public interest" no such decision has been taken over the South African deal.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year, Mr Mbeki said: "It does puzzle me why a strategic interest with regard to the work of BAE, there would be a strategic interest that would arise with one country and does not arise with other countries."

Mr Blair may have some explaining to do when he meets his host in South Africa this week.

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Those in UK can watch PANORAMA RADA issue and british Arms sale in SAUD ARABIA. Right now. BBC 1

Unaweza kuangalia hapa kwenye computer yako BAE payments to Saudi Prince

Usipofanikiwa hapo nenda http://search.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/sea...e&q=panorama&scope=all&Search.x=36&Search.y=8

Then bonyeza kwenye video ya BAE payments to Saudi prince.