VZCZCXRO6219
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN RUEHROV
DE RUEHDR #0492/01 2210826
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 080826Z AUG 08
FM AMEMBASSY DAR ES SALAAM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7762
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DAR ES SALAAM 000492 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AF/E FOR JLIDDLE, AF/RSA FOR LMUNCY 
DRL FOR BCONNUCK 
ALSO FOR INL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM PREL ECON TZ
SUBJECT: TANZANIA: JUNE - JULY 2008 POLITICAL ROUNDUP 
 
¶1. (U) The June-July 2008 Political Roundup includes: 
 
  --  Donors drag feet on direct budget support 
  --  Former Regional Crime Officer on trial for murder 
  --  CHADEMA party deputy killed in road accident 
  --  Handicraft traders disappointed by Sullivan Summit 
  --  Budget session in full swing in Parliament 
  --  Government responds to university riots 
  --  "Phantom teachers" removed from payroll 
 
Donors drag feet on budget support 
---------------------------------- 
¶2. (U) Certain development partners who contribute directly to the 
Government of Tanzania's (GOT) general budget are withholding the 
2008/09 disbursements until the Government of Tanzania (GOT) 
publicly reaffirms its commitment to tackle corruption.  Donors are 
hesitant to support the GOT's general budget following incidents 
over the last six months of corruption, resignation of ministers 
including the Prime Minister Edward Lowassa.  The donors are also 
asking for the implementation of recommendations from the Controller 
and Auditor General's Office (CAG) made in the wake of its 
investigation into various questionable financial dealings. 
 
¶3. (U) Historically many donors have given unconditional budgetary 
support to the GOT.  However, some partners are reexamining this 
unconditional support in the wake of allegations of corruption and 
large sums of unaccounted for funds, with no arrests or prosecutions 
to date.  While the GOT has publicly announced its intentions to 
move away from the dependence on donor money, the government would 
need to broaden sources of tax revenue and/or substantially increase 
its debt through loans to achieve this goal. 
 
Abadallah Zombe trial reveals police brutality, theft 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
¶4. (U) Former Dar es Salaam Regional Crime Officer, Abdallah Zombe, 
and 12 other police officers have been accused of killing four 
wealthy gemstone dealers and a taxi driver on January 16, 2006, in 
Dar es Salaam.  While the officers denied the charges, their trials 
are revealing the use of arms and execution-style killings that have 
sparked public outrage and calls for investigations into police 
brutality and corruption.  A pathology report confirms that the four 
murder victims were shot in the back of the head while sitting or 
kneeling in a group.  This case has highlighted an underlying 
mistrust of law enforcement authorities in Tanzania and persistent 
allegations from the public of excessive use of force by the police. 
 
 
CHADEMA party's deputy chairman killed in road accident 
------------------------------------------ 
¶5. (U) On July 29, the former Vice Chairman of the CHADEMA 
opposition party, Chacha Wangwe, died in a road accident.  He was 
the elected Member of Parliament from Tarime district in northern 
Tanzania.  In the weeks immediately prior to the accident, Wangwe 
had publicly accused other CHADEMA party officials of nepotism, 
tribalism and misuse of party resources and government stipends. 
Wangwe had also announced last month that he intended to run for the 
national party chairmanship in November, 2008.  This led to a bitter 
leadership argument with CHADEMA party chairman, Freeman Mbowe, and 
to Wangwe's suspension as national Vice Chairman. 
 
¶6. (U) Wangwe's death left many of his party members accusing 
CHADEMA officials of foul play.  Based on rumors that he had been 
shot, his relatives protested and forced postponement of his burial 
ceremony until a second autopsy was performed.  The results of this 
postmortem, held in the presence of family members, government 
representatives and select party members, affirmed that Wangwe's 
death was from injuries sustained in the car accident.  Wangwe's 
driver, businessman Deus Mallya, has been arrested for reckless 
driving and may face manslaughter charges. 
 
8TH SULLIVAN SUMMIT: Tanzanian traders disappointed 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
¶7. (U) The Eighth Sullivan Summit, although billed as "The Summit of 
a Lifetime", has been dubbed by many small business owners in 
Tanzania as the "Disappointment of a Lifetime."  Most of the 
activities at the Summit centered around structured programs in the 
Arusha International Conference Centre (AICC), planned safaris, and 
shopping stops away from the conference center.  Numerous Tanzanian 
handicraft traders had rented exhibition space at USD 500 for the 
week-long event with the expectation of selling wares to the Summit 
participants.  However, there was little mention of the vendors 
during the Summit's events.  Also, the layout of the Summit grounds 
did not allow for easy access to the vending areas. 
 
¶8. (U) In addition, while some of the handicraft traders had rented 
exhibition space adjacent to AICC and the Summit grounds, others 
were given rental space some 10 miles away near the Arusha airport. 
Several newspaper editorials said the least the organizers could 
 
DAR ES SAL 00000492  002 OF 002 
 
 
have done was to offer an apology to the vendors who signed on with 
high hopes yet were unable to realize any profit. 
 
Calls for "people-centered" budget 
--------------------------------- 
¶9. (U) June and July are focused on the annual budget session in the 
Tanzanian Parliament.  Members of Parliament (MPs) from several 
political parties have called for the debate to be centered on duty 
and patriotism rather than partisanship.  Public expectations 
continue to be high that this year's budget will offer relief from 
the rising cost of food, transportation, and basic necessities.  The 
cost of living in Tanzania has gone up by 0.7 per cent to 9.7 per 
cent in a little over one month. 
 
Government acts on university riots 
----------------------------------- 
¶10. (U) In mid-2008, the Government of Tanzania established a 
Commission to investigate and respond to increased violence and 
disruptive behavior among university students.  The Commission is 
headed by the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, 
who is charged with discovering the root causes of campus 
disruptions.  Members of Parliament have inquired if the steps taken 
by the Government have brought about long-term solutions to the 
problem. 
 
¶11. (U) The Commission's report determined that the main causes of 
discontent among university students were delays in the disbursement 
of student loans, shortages of funds for practical training, and an 
inadequate development and research budget.  A government official 
said that the Student Loan Board for Higher Education has recently 
been strengthened to iron out problems that led to the June 2007 
student demonstrations at the University of Dar es Salaam.  The 
Board has increased both its staff and the qualifications for 
employment.  Also, offices have been better equipped and systems 
upgraded to improve how to determine the economic situation of loan 
applicants. 
 
CCM members involved in corruption to face music 
------------------------------------------ 
¶12. (U) Following a review by the National Executive Committee (NEC) 
of the ruling  Chama Cha Mpinduzi (CCM) party, it was announced June 
15 that any members implicated in corruption must be held 
accountable and face possible expulsion from the party.  This review 
was a critique of government performance for the first half of CCM's 
five-year mandate. 
 
¶13. (U) Recent scandals, including the "Richmond deal" and the 
External Payment Arrears (EPA) scandals, have damaged the ruling 
party's image and disrupted the CCM internally.  The Richmond 
incident involved an irregular bidding process which awarded a power 
production contract to the Texas-based Richmond Development Company 
(RDC).  This deal cost Tanzania millions of dollars, but never 
produced any power. 
 
¶14. (U) The External Payment Arrears (EPA) scandal revealed that 
payments amounting to millions of dollars were made by authorities 
at Tanzania's Central Bank to 22 companies that could not justify 
the payments.  Some payments were made on the basis of dubious 
documentation. 
 
¶15. (U) Former Prime Minister Edward Lowassa; former Minister for 
Energy and Minerals, Nazir Karamagi; and former Minister for 
Infrastructure Development, Andrew Chenge, have all been implicated 
in corrupt practices.  All of these events have damaged the ruling 
party's credibility and image. 
 
Education: phantom teachers 
--------------------------- 
¶16. (U) A government study claims that phantom workers cost Tanzania 
taxpayers a total of TSh3 billion (USD 2.47 million) between 2001 
and 2007.  The Minister of State for Public Service Management, Hawa 
Ghasia, said an investigation uncovered a total of 1,413 ghost 
teachers in public secondary schools.  In efforts to eliminate all 
phantom teachers from the payroll, the Ministry of Education and 
Vocational Training removed from the payroll about 1,853 teachers 
who had been absent for a long periods of time without permission. 
This brings to a total of 3,266 teachers removed from the payroll as 
of May 2008. 
 
¶17. (U) The problem at the Ministry of Education and Vocational 
Training is exacerbated by the failure of officials to submit lists 
of teachers who retire, die or resign from their jobs.  Some 
teachers were discovered to have more than one payroll number in the 
Treasury System and were being paid under both numbers. 
 
Green