Wednesday: February 22nd, 2012
Page One: Key stories of the day
Campaign in the Arumeru by-election starts in earnest
With the parties settled on their nominees, politics now becomes the focus as the campaign begins in earnest.
Chadema leadership in trouble with the law
Two of the highest ranking Chadema Dr. Willbroad Slaa and Freeman Mbowe stand before the judge to answer charges of allegedly breaking police orders.
It’s the economy, stupid: Part II
The IMF is suggesting that the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) re-think their strategy to rein in inflation, while the Finance Minister attacks those arguing that economic growth in 2012 will be anemic.
Dr. Mwakyembe’s alleged poison attack and its political implications
The papers look at what the Deputy Minister for Works’ accusations are doing for the stability of the cabinet.
Notable editorials/opinion pieces:
- ‘Maskini Kikwete, serikali yake haina umoja’ [Poor Kikwete, his government lacks unity] | MwanaHalisi
- ‘TAKUKURU wanatuchezea akili na uchunguzi wao wakati wa uchaguzi’ [PCCB is trying to deceive us with its investigations during elections] | Raia Mwema
- ‘Viongozi jengeni historia kama Lowassa, Sokoine na Mrema’ [Leaders build your legacy like Lowassa, Sokoine and Mrema] | Mtanzania
- ‘Mwacheni Raisi afanye kazi zake’ [Let the president do his job] | Habari Leo
- ‘We hail our new ties with Mexico, but…’ | The African
- ‘Fighting graft is defending justice’ | The Guardian
Other stories of note:
- ‘Kanisa [Katoliki] latoa mapya’ [The [Catholic] Church brings out something new] | Habari Leo
- ‘Hamad Rashid akana kuanzisha chama kipya’ [Hamad Rashid denies forming a new party] | Majira
- ‘State failing you on water, Zitto tells villagers’ | The Citizen
- ‘Zitto: Umeme wa dharura ni ufisadi’ [Zitto: Emergency power is corruption] | Mwananchi
- ‘Jussa, huwezi kuitetea CUF bila kuibua udini?’ [Jussa, can you not defend CUF without raising the spectre of religion?] | The Citizen
- ‘Pope Benedict owns up to Freemasonry, achieves Last Days theology’ | The African
- ‘Machinga Complex sasa basi, kupangishwa wafanyabiashara wakubwa’ [Machinga Complex is done, to be rented out to big business] | Uhuru
- ‘Tanesco accused of coal power production delays’ | The Guardian
- ‘Bajeti ‘yakwamisha’ kasi uhakiki utajiri wa vigogo’ [[Small] budget ‘slows down’ the speed of verifying public figures’ wealth] | Raia Mwema
- ‘2 pastors arraigned for 122m/- theft’ | Daily News
- ‘Capital City set to get better roads, drainage’ | The Citizen
Business Headlines:
- ‘British firm to invest over USD 10bn in gas extraction’ | The Guardian
- ‘Shilling loses against the dollar’ | Daily News
- ‘WB: Two growth circles to Tanzania’s economic transition’ | The Guardian
- ‘Bill on gas sector regulation ‘almost ready’ | The Citizen
- ‘SACCOS yatoa mkopo mil.41/-Songea’ [SACCOS gives 41mil/- worth of loans in Songea] | Majira
- ‘Shoprite profit up 18 pct’ | Daily News
Regional Headlines:
- ‘”Resurrected” Mugabe “fit as a fiddle” after reaching 88’ | Daily News
- ‘EA economy grows despite EU economic shakedown’ | The African
- ‘Zimbabwe needs fewer, strong, banks, finance minister says’ | The Guardian
- ‘Botswana opposition unity plan in dilemma’ | The Citizen
- ‘Abdoulaye Wade apalilia vita Senegal [Abdoulaye Wade cries out for war in Senegal] | Mwananchi
- ‘Proposal to legalise prostitution in Kenya based on reality’ | The Citizen
Page One: A summary
Campaign in the Arumeru by-election starts in earnest
Following Sioi Sumari’s victory in the CCM primary in Arumery East, divisions have emerged within the local party organisation that could threaten its chances of retaining the seat in the up-coming by election in April, reports Mtanzania. Apparently the paper observed some party members leaving their local headquarters looking mighty displeased with the result. ‘Mtanzania saw some party members saying things that irritated those around them,’ the paper writes.
According to Mwananchi, some officials from the party’s youth wing, UVCCM, claimed that the whole primary process was invalid as it was clearly influenced by corruption. Kennedy Mpumilwa, a UVCCM member from Arusha, told the paper that, ‘this election is not good enough because some local party members were bribed. Up to TZS 150,000 was being distributed to any member who will accept it. So what kind of CCM is this if our selection is done through corruption?’ This does not bode well for Mr. Sumari as he prepares himself for the by-election. It should be noted that Mr. Mpumilwa is also CCM’s Chairman of the treasury committee in Arumeru. Failure to get him on board will leave Mr. Sumari with a fractured party base going into what promises to be a bitterly fought campaign.
Meanwhile, Mwananchi is reporting that Chadema looks strong and unified, with their nominee pleased to hear reports of divisions coming out of CCM’s camp. ‘I heard that Sioi [won]. They should bring him, he is the one I wanted. Chadema we are not scared by any candidate and we are confident we’ll win.’ Joshua Nasari said.
So, with less than a month before the campaign starts on March 5, political reporters have already settled on a narrative. According to these reports Mr. Sumari is coming into the campaign as a weakened candidate, a divisive nominee of his party, while Chadema are united and going strong. Whether the campaign will fit the reported narrative remains to be seen.
Chadema leadership in trouble with the law
Last year, there was a time when it seemed that Chadema’s party leaders were spending more time being arrested than doing what they were elected to do. Well, after a lull period it looks like it is back to those stories again as newspapers are reporting that Dr. Willbroad Slaa and two others are in danger of being arrested following their refusal to appear in court to answer charges of ignoring police orders.
Nipashe is reporting that Dr. Slaa and his girlfriend Josephine have 24 hours to report to Court and respond to charges brought forth against them or risk being remanded by force. ‘These accused are not being honest when, through their lawyer, they are claiming that they confused the dates because of having so many cases against them,’ the government lawyer Mr. Edwin Kakolaki told the judge. Mr. Kakolaki charged that Dr. Slaa and his associates were being accused of instigating violence and organizing a public gathering without a police permit. He went to implore the judge to issue an arrest warrant to compel the accused to appear before the court to answer the charges. Judge Charles Magesa of Arusha Resident Court refused to grant such a warrant and instead issued the 24 hour order.
Also accused of the same charges is Chadema’s national Chairman and the parliamentary leader of the opposition Mr. Freeman Mbowe, who was present at the hearing.
It’s the economy, stupid: Part II
Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Mr. Mustafa Mkulo reacted angrily to suggestions that Tanzania’s economy will only grow a meager 3% this year. This prediction was revealed in the so-called Macroeconomic Country Forecast issued yesterday by a Netherland-based Currency Exchange Fund (TCX), who argue that ‘the economic slowdown this year will…be caused by weak demand for commodities on the world market due to economic difficulties,’ reported The Citizen.
But the Minister called such forecasting unduly ‘pessimistic’ and that government figures show growth for 2011 third quarter at 6.4 per cent which corresponds with this year’s projection of ‘real growth of 7.2 per cent as [per] by [the] IMF and World Bank.’ Nevertheless, TCX Senior Vice President Harad Hirschhofer argued that, according to The Citizen, ‘the central bank will continue taking policy measures that are aimed at reducing the amount of money in the economy this year [which] will result in higher lending rates,’ and as a consequence, slow down the country’s economy.
At the same meeting an IMF official warned that if the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) continues to lack a sustained fiscal policy that will counteract rising inflation it’ll be hard to see how the government will be able to lower the high inflation figure in the country. Mr. John Wakeman-Lin said the BoT needs to look at a multiple-approached strategy that will include lowering of interest rates for example, rather than simply ‘fighting core inflation,’ reported The African.
Dr. Mwakyembe’s alleged poison attack and its political implications
The Deputy Minister for Works Dr. Harrison Mwakyembe’s continuing insistence that his prolonged illness is as a result of being poisoned is apparently causing unwanted headaches to the government, dividing the cabinet in the process. MwanaHalisi is reporting that the government is in possession of a report that details the health issues that ails the Minister. A source tells the paper that the report was even discussed in the cabinet. What is unclear, according to the source, is what is causing Dr. Mwakyembe’s illness.
Meanwhile, Raia Mwema claims to have a source in India, at the Apollo Hospital in Hyderabad where Dr. Mwakyembe is receiving treatment , who tells the paper that the disease afflicting the Minister is caused by chemicals within his bone marrow that have been released into his bloodstream and now they are attacking him.
Well, it appears that this saga will continue to occupy our newspapers’ column inches, until evidence is made public that, as Raia Mwema puts it, sheds further light on whether the Minister was indeed poisoned or not. Until then, the issue, as we reported here, will continue to divide President Kikwete’s government and distract it from focusing on its daily business.