By Frank Kimboy
The Dar es Salaam City council will now be solely responsible for the management of the busy Ubungo terminal after the private contract for revenue collection ended on Saturday night.
The government reposed the facility from Smart Holding Limited associated with veteran politician Kingunge Ngombale Mwiru who have run it since 2004.
The City council will now be responsible for collecting the revenues and other taxes at the terminal.
Smart Holdings Limited recently came under public spotlight after queries emerged over how it won the tender followed with other reports that the government was losing millions of shillings in revenue.
Prime minister Mizengo Pinda soon ordered the Controller Auditor General to carry out an audit and scrutinize revenues collection at the Bus Terminal and a report is due to be presented to the government. Pinda has expressed concern that only Sh750,000 was paid daily to the council yet evidence indicated much more was being raised.
However speaking to the reporters yesterday after the expiry of the contract, the smart holdings limited managing director Mr Hassan Khani, said the company was collecting between Sh1.8 to Sh2 million daily, and that 75 per cent of the income money was taken by the Kinondoni Municipal council.
Mr Khani denied the claims that his company left some loopholes that caused the government lose millions of shillings in terms of revenues. He said his company was only responsible for collecting the gates and other business revenues inside the terminus while the Kinondoni Municipality reserved the right to collect revenues generated by billboards and other sources.
He said in 2005 an evaluation by the ministry of finance found out that the terminal could only generate up to Sh2 millions each day.
Mr. Khan also disassociated Mr. Kingunge from the contract and said the firm’s directors were Peres Mwiru and Victor Mwiru who are only related to the politician.
