Fuel's Gold
By Kizito Makoye
Tanzania’s fuel pump prices have rocketed to their highest levels in the
country’s history and yet little is being done to pull back the alarming figures
displayed by service stations. .
A survey conducted by The Express at various fuel stations in Dar es Salaam on
Tuesday revealed that petrol is currently sold at between Tsh. 990 and Tsh. 1010
per litre. Diesel has a recorded price of between Tsh. 985 and Tsh. 995.
There are several factors influencing the price rise at national level: Freight
on Board (FoB) price of finished products, the shilling’s stability and a number
of taxes.
Many stakeholders in the oil sector link the increase in fuel prices to the
global market forces: increased demand prompted by increased consumption and
cold weather in Europe and America.
Noticeably Chinese demand for crude oil has pushed up global prices. According
to Jonathan Anderson, chief Asian economist at UBS in Hong Kong, the correlation
is “almost certainly spurious”, for UBS expects crude oil prices to decline. The
current price of crude petroleum is US$ 57.30 per barrel.
Although China accounts for only 8 per cent of global oil consumption, well
below America's 25 per cent, it has accounted for as much as one-third of the
increase in global oil demand over the past three years, almost twice as much as
America. And China's oil demand will grow as incomes rise and more households
can afford cars and energy-consuming household appliances.
China could decide the fate of the oil price over the next year, since, as we
said, it has accounted for one-third of the rise in global oil demand since
2001. If China's economy continues to boom, its energy demand will keep on
surging. But if China stumbles, oil prices are expected to tumble in turn.
Some analysts believe that the depreciation of the US dollar (in which oil is
priced) against the Euro has had an impact on fuel costs.
A report by America's Department of Energy has forecast that global oil prices
would average US$ 48.95 a barrel this year, (14 per cent more than it predicted
in January), and US$ 47.05 in 2006.
Major oil exporters are divided between those such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait
that favours lifting output in an attempt to ease prices, and those such as
Venezuela that argue against reconciliatory moves towards big consumers,
principally the United States of America.
An official from GAPCO petrol station in Dar es Salaam, who sought anonymity,
said the recent rise in prices has come as a surprise because at present there
has been no specific reason for a boost in the world market.
“In the past the war between the US and Iraq was the major pretext for the
increased fuel costs… we do not know for sure what is happening in the world
market now… it is difficult to predict,” he said.
Acting Commissioner for Petrol in the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources,
Ngosi Mwihava, told The Express yesterday that, since the full liberalisation of
the oil sector in 2000, oil companies have been fixing prices in accordance with
purchasing prices and that they have been forced to include a profit margin.
He added that the global fuel costs have been influenced by the unrest in the
Gulf along with other reasons. Syria and Iran have not been wearing a happy
smile on their little faces of late.
He further said that with the formation of a regulatory body called Energy and
Water Utility Regulatory Authority, the government will be able to monitor the
fuel market trends in the country to ensure that there are no price cartels.
This sounds good, but yet more civil servants running around regulating things
and holding seminars means one more burden for the public to finance. Would such
a body pay its way or would it issue yet more wordy, meaningless reports?
The hike in fuel prices has unsettled consumers in Dar es Salaam, many of whom
are unable to cope with the expense. But many feel that in the end they have no
option but to purchase the precious liquid at whatever cost.
The transport sector has inevitably been hit by the augmented prices. As a
result, transporters are prompted to raise the cost of their services to
compensate fuel expenses. A few weeks ago commuter bus operators in Dar es
Salaam were compelled to hike bus fares from Tsh. 150 to Tsh. 200 and Tsh. 300
to cover what they termed as increasing operational costs.
“There are two ways the price of petrol can come down. One is for the world
market price to reduce (we have no control over that) and the other is for the
government to reduce the taxes on petrol at least for now,” said an oil analyst
Abu Saleh.
“It is election year and the government should seriously look at the way the
price of petrol has rocketed. It will affect each and every household in the
country,” he added.
However sources within the government said that to reduce taxes on oil (petrol)
would have serious implications for the government since oil taxes contribute a
very large portion to the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) collections.
Every litre of petroleum is taxed Tsh. 330 that includes sales tax, VAT, road
fund and a commission for the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC)
for oil development and research.
Tanzania procures its finished product from overseas, mainly from Saudi Arabia.
The annual consumption as of 2004 stood at 1.4 billion litres.
In its bid to become less oil dependent, Tanzania initiated the Songo Songo gas
project, which was completed last year.
Tanzania Association of Oil Companies Marketing (TAOCM) has 15 members, who
control over 80 per cent of the market share.
Govt’s silence
mars Nyamuma villagers’ fate
By Timothy Kitundu
The Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) has blamed the government for keeping
quiet on the case regarding Ibrahim Korosso and 134 Nyamuma villagers who were
evicted from their residents and their houses torched.
Helen Kijo-Bisimba, LHRC Executive Director, told members of the press Tuesday
in Dar es Salaam that the Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance had
recommended that the Nyamuma villagers should be resettled in their village
within three months following the ruling of the commission.
“But to the puzzlement of many, to date three months and eight days have lapsed
without any action from the government which is very unfair,” she said.
According to Kijo-Bisimba, LHRC was very pleased to learn about the
recommendations of the commission, hence the centre convened a press conference
to hail the historic and exceptional ruling of the commission; however the
government did not act.
“The Centre believed that the government of the United Republic is a government
that respects the rule of law and that because it was the same government that
appointed the commission in accordance with the Constitution of the United
Republic, the ruling and recommendations of the commission could have been
accorded its due on time,” she said.
She said, while the government is turning a deaf ear to the recommendations, the
villagers are suffering as lot. It is over four years now since their houses
were set on fire followed by the eviction from the area which prompted them to
live like refugees in their own country.
A government that cares for its people, she argued, wouldn’t tolerate such a
situation. Even those who conducted that inhuman act are walking free and
enjoying normal life as if nothing happened.
“This is very dangerous because it is an indication that the government seems to
ignore the rule of law and that it encourages impunity,” she said.
The Centre, according to Kijo-Bisimba, is one of the complainants, and due to
the situation regarding the Nyamuma villagers it will seek the truth from the
commission as to why the government has not taken any appropriate action.
‘Hospitality
IS corruption’
By Emmanuel Lazaro, Mwanza
Registrar of Political Parties, John Tendwa has openly said that
hospitality is corruption and not generosity, as some politicians claim.
Tendwa gave the bold statement last week after a visit together with Minister of
State in the Prime Minister’s Office (Information and Political Affairs), Seif
Hatibu, to Radio SAUT Station, owned by St. Augustine University of Tanzania
(SAUT) at Nyegezi in Mwanza City.
Answering a question from a SAUT student who wanted to know the difference
between corruption and hospitality, Tendwa said he understands hospitality in
its current form is corruption and not generosity as twisted by politicians.
“I, as the administrator of democracy insist again and again that hospitality is
corruption in all its forms,” observed Tendwa.
The concept of hospitality has been bent by legislation. Earlier, hospitality
was given by the host, but now it is the opposite. It is the guest who treats
the host with hospitality, a thing that leads to corruption, he added.
“The hospitality which you hear about now, helps in political campaigns and it
would be a good thing if wananchi realised this fact,” Tendwa said.
Tendwa directed the media to continue educating the public, so that they analyse
the truth and realise that hospitality is corruption in its real sense, and that
such acts will kill democracy in the country.
Etymology at
the centre in drama for young people
By Kizitto Joseph
A project aiming at education through art in secondary schools has
resulted in “Speak the Truth”, a drama that gives historical background to the
origin of the Kiswahili language.
Manager for the project, Blandina Munghezi said in a statement that the drama
aims at telling the origin of Kiswahili in Tanzania by showing how the language
borrowed words from other languages like Portuguese, Indian languages and
Arabic.
The interaction between the Swahili culture and foreign cultures is clearly
evident when one studies Kiswahili. Some words were adopted because of
long-distance trade; others came via the spread of different religions.
Munghezi said the play will highlight the complexities of the language and its
users, where the youth are accused by elders of misusing the language by mixing
it with English. Similarly, the young people object to the elders’ mixing of
Kiswahili with Arabic.
According to Munghezi, the play will be shown in various secondary schools in
Tanzania.
The project is sponsored by the British Council.
CCM
councillors cry foul
By Zainab Yusuph, Dodoma
CCM councillors in Dodoma Municipal Council have asked the
government to review their gratuity allowances paid for each election term
Councillors are paid Tsh. 300,000, compared with Members of Parliament (MPs),
who pocket Tsh. 27 million.
Talking to The Express recently in Dodoma Municipality, the councillors said the
government should remember that the councillors are the major executives in the
MPs’ constituencies.
Dodoma Makulu Ward Councillor, Ali Issa Bilingi said the government should
change this system as it is unjust.
“We remain in power for five years, the same period as for MPs; all campaign
activities are conducted by us; people with problems come to us for assistance;
we win elections, but after completing our period of five years we are paid Tsh.
300,000 whereas the MPs get Tsh. 27 million,” he said.
“The state of not being paid salaries humiliates us; in villages we are looked
upon as unimportant people compared to executive officers or government civil
servants. We ask the government to think seriously about this issue,” lamented
Bilingi.
No school to cater for
secondary students
By Kizitto Joseph
Over half of the number of students who passed last year’s standard seven
examinations at Miburani Ward, Temeke in Dar es Salaam have failed to be
received into secondary education due to lack of secondary schools. Their
parents have now taken the matter into their own hands and have agreed to build
their own secondary school to accommodate their children.
About 498 students among the 704 who passed the exams could not find places in
secondary education, according to ward representative, Shaban Mchumira, who
revealed the numbers over the weekend at a parents’ meeting at Mazoezi primary
school.
This meant, he said, that only 206 children out of 704 who passed the exams
managed to proceed to secondary school.
He urged the parents to build their own secondary school and said: “We have to
wake up! Let us prepare a good environment for the future of our children. Let
us not see it as problematic to contribute for our own secondary school.”
Mchumira said the government has promised to give Tsh. 16 millions for the
accomplishment of the secondary school. Tsh. seven million will go to two
classrooms while Tsh. nine million will be used for teachers’ houses.
Parents are urged to start building thanks to various contributions. The
location for the school is planned to be at Wailes, Temeke in Dar es Salaam.
“I ask every parent of a student studying at Mazoezi Primary School to
contribute Tsh. 2,000 right away so as to set in march the commencement of this
project,” Mchumira said.
Dangerous,
deceptive products confiscated
By Angela Mazula
Over 147 types of prohibited cosmetics, with a worth of Tsh. 24
million, were seized from shops and other outlets, during surprise inspections
carried out by Tanzania Food and Drug Authority (TDFA) officers, in all
municipalities in the country.
Speaking at the press conference held in Dar es Salaam, Tuesday this week,
Director of the project Dr. Sekubwabo Ngendabanka said that laboratory tests
revealed the presence of harmful substances, which were not displayed on the
packaging, contrary to regulations, while some of the cosmetics carried labels
with unfamiliar names aimed at fooling the authorities.
He said that cosmetics dealers have now gone beyond the point of lying about the
ingredients, what they have done is just to change the names, and they don’t
show the ingredients on the packaging of their product.
He said added this is the problem for the uses because it has side effect to
amongst of the cosmetic which containing Hydroquinon, mercury and steroids
whereby after a time the skin remain very lighter and can not even resist
pigment from the sun.
He explained that many of the people misused the products between drug and
cosmetic whereby someone get rushers, pimples on her or his face instead of
going to the hospital and get consultancy from the professional doctor he or she
listen to his friend and start use their local products and after a two or three
year the problem start to come up.
However the TFDA Director General Margaret Ndomondo-Sigonda said that awareness
on the hazards is still low a lot of effort is needed to still insist that
people should stop using products that containing prohibited ingredient because
they have harmful long-term effects including causing cancer of the skin and
liver as well as kidney damage.
She added that a big number of women suffer from skin cancer, heart attack and
kidney infection if they don’t want to be care about and still use cosmetic with
cheaper price for local use it effect start to come up after two to four year
where could be no other alternative rather than die.
Sigonda asked members of the public to report shops or persons selling
prohibited cosmetics so that legal measures could be taken against the offenders
in collaboration with Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) to ensure that no such
cosmetic comes to Tanzania, the products in question were not sold in overseas
countries where they were manufactured but instead made for sold in Africa as
the dumping site, not considering that those cosmetic with prohibited
ingredients had harmful effects on cosmetic.
She explained that “ Beauty is good, but there are good cosmetics which, when a
person uses them, TDFA has no problem with that, but the trouble is their price
is expensive, such that many people cannot afford them, and they keep using
these local products which, after a time, start bringing some different problems
onto the skin”.
TACAIDS
calls on women to spread information
By Kizitto Joseph
Chairperson for Tanzania Commission for AIDS (TACAIDS), retired
Major General Herman Lupogo, has called upon the Society for Women Doctors
(MEWATA) to utilize its expertise in informing women in rural areas about
HIV/AIDS.
He gave this call over the weekend, when opening a seminar on AIDS related
problems, for women in rural areas and urban centres.
Lupogo said many women in rural areas are not aware of AIDS, which contributed
to the spread of the disease.
“Through your association and especially being doctors and lawyers, you are
obliged to save the lives of your colleagues in rural areas, by sending them the
message about the disease. There are people in villages who do not even know the
proper use of condoms,” he said.
This seminar involved women doctors, lawyers and other concerned stakeholders.
Lupogo said the motto: “Mwanamke ni nguvu ya maendeleo, achukue nafasi” has to
be put in practice if we want to reduce infections.
Private and
public contributions lift TEA
By Timothy Kitundu
The Tanzania Education Authority (TEA) has announced that it has
received a total of Tsh. 19.5 billion in grants since it was established.
According to TEA Director General Mercy Sila, the authority has received a total
of Tsh. 19.4 billion from the government, while other well wishers and
stakeholders have contributed a total of Tsh. 106 million.
Sila said this in Dar es Salaam last week, when Geita Gold Mine (GGM), a
subsidiary company of AngloGold Ashanti, presented a Tsh. 1 million cheque to
TEA, aimed at improving educational standards.
Sila said TEA is a national fund, therefore all contributions were greatly
valued. “The aim of this fund is to improve the standard of education, and also
to be used for those who cannot pay for education,” she said.
She said that already 45 primary and secondary schools and higher learning
institutions have benefited from the fund. The fund is aimed at both state-owned
and privately owned schools.
Presenting the contribution on behalf of AngloGold Ashanti, Hatibu Senkoro the
firm’s Country Manager said he was optimistic that the contribution of Tsh. 1
million to TEA would assist in achieving their plans.
According to Senkoro, the firm in its first four years of operation supported
the education sector through the construction of five secondary schools in Geita
District which were also fitted with basic furniture.
‘Party agents
should come forward’
By Kim Aidan, Morogoro
Political parties in Morogoro Region have been requested to appoint agents for
the registration of voters in the Permanent Voters Register, which is expected
to begin on March 29 and last until April 18, in regions of the Eastern Zone.
The call was made by Morogoro Regional Commissioner, Stephen Mashishanga when
opening a two-day seminar for the registration officers in Morogoro Region, held
at Kolla Hotel hall in Morogoro Municipality.
Mashishanga said, installing party agents in every registration centre will
obviate the spread of rumours and various other accusations levelled against the
officers concerned, especially during the election period.
In preserving and maintaining democracy, Mashinga said, agents are needed to
ensure that those registered in the Permanent Voters Register are genuine
Tanzanians and have the qualifications required.
The RC also advised district and municipal councils to start motivating people
and educating them on the importance of being registered in the Permanent Voters
Register, instead of waiting till the final date comes.
Information
centre soon in Mwanza
By Sebastian Gabunga, Mwanza
Mwanza Press Club (MPC) has endorsed a strategic plan which will see
the establishment of a Multi Media Information Centre.
The Club’s Secretary, Jacob Kambili said the programme may start any time during
this year under the sponsorship of the Swedish Embassy.
The Multi Media Information Centre will involve the Community Radio, the local
newspaper Taa, Internet facilities, a secretarial bureau and the establishment
of a Savings and Credit Cooperative Society (SACCOS).
Other projects which will be included in the plan will be the establishment of a
welfare fund for members to support each other during difficult situations, and
improvement of rural reporting, with the aim of involving community
participation in development issues.