Samia demands ministers to act on CAG report queries

Dar es Salaam. President Samia Suluhu Hassan yesterday tasked ministers to immediately start responding to queries raised by the Controller and Auditor General (CAG) in their respective areas.

The CAG Charles Kichere handed his reports for the financial year 2022/23 to the president last week and they are supposed to be tabled in Parliament after seven days since then.

Read: Air Tanzania leads loss-making parastatals despite government investment.

President Hassan said all the ministers should now respond to the issues raised before the Parliament deliberations on the reports start.

“Respond to the CAG queries immediately,” she said at a function to swear-in newly appointed government officials in Dar es Salaam.

“When the parliament deliberate on the CAG reports, all queries must have been explained. Once you do that, we will be in a position to know the status of the issues and allow us to take appropriate actions,” she said.

Some of the issues raised by the CAG include the losses incurred by government entities, including Air Tanzania Company Ltd. (ATCL), Tanzania Telecommunications Corporation (TTCL), Tanzania Post Corporation, and the sustainability of the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).

Read: Why Tanzania CAG warns of NHIF sustainability dangers

The CAG reports include performance audits, local government audits, parastatal audits, efficiency audits and special audits, among other reports.

President Hassan said the ministers should immediately start working on the CAG reports.

The officials who were sworn in yesterday, including a minister, deputies, regional commissioners, and other technocrats, were recently appointed in a mini reshuffle, which saw the ruling Chama cha Mapinduzi propaganda chief appointed regional commissioner for Arusha.

Mr Deogratius Ndejembi was sworn in as the new Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office responsible for Labour, Youth, Employment and People with Disabilities, replacing Prof Joyce Ndalichako, whose appointment was revoked.

Mr Ndejembi was tasked with coordinating youth-related programmes, which are implemented by different offices.

“You don’t need to spend much time mobilising resources for youth projects because the projects are already being implemented by other ministries. Just coordinate them,” President Hassan said.

New constitution, fake water bills

Some deputy ministers who took the oath include Mr Jumanne Sagini, who was appointed deputy minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs, moving out of the Ministry of Home Affairs where he was also deputy. Some of the big issues in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs are the push for the new constitution.

“For the time being, people are demanding a new constitution. I believe you will support your colleague in dealing with the issue appropriately,” President Hassan said, adding that Mr Sagini has good experience in government.

President Hassan also raised concerns about fake water bills, telling the ministry to push for pre-paid meters that will allow people to consume water as they pay and accelerate water supply in both rural and urban areas.

The ruling party election manifesto for 2020 promised to ensure that water supply reaches 95 percent in urban areas and 85 percent in rural areas by 2025.

Mr Mathew Kundo, who was sworn in as deputy minister for Water, was tasked with cooperating with his minister to make sure the targets were achieved.

She also ordered the ministry to push ahead with the pre-paid water meter as a way of avoiding fake bills that affect users.

“Make it the way we do in electricity,” she said.