Looking back at a historic and eventful parliamentary sitting

Dodoma. The seventh sitting of the 10th Parliament, which concluded its sessions here yesterday, will go down in Tanzania’s history for handling a number of weighty issues that could define the country’s future.

However, it has also left a blot with debates that were highly partisan.

“Since I entered this august House in 2005, this has been one of my best experiences with regard to debating issues of national interest. However, debates were of a poor quality in terms of content and time,” said Mr Zitto Kabwe (Kigoma Urban-ACT-Wazalendo).

With President John Magufuli putting on a spirited fight to ensure that Tanzania gets its fair share of revenue from its natural resources, the writing was on the wall with regard to issues that would define the direction taken by the House.

The sacking by Dr Magufuli of Energy and Minerals minister Sospeter Muhongo on May 24 – after a report revealed that mining firms were under-declaring the value and quantity of minerals in concentrates – saw debates veering towards natural resources, with both CCM and the Opposition adopting uncompromising stances.

It thus came as no surprise when, on June 2, Speaker Job Ndungai clamped down on several opposition MPs during debate on the budget estimates of the Ministry of Energy and Minerals Natural Resources, which were presented by Industry, Trade and Investment minister following Prof Muhongo’s sacking.

This followed a standoff in the debating chamber after an MP was heard shouting from the CCM side that the Opposition was siding with and defending people stealing Tanzania’s minerals.

This prompted Mr John Mnyika (Kibamba-Chadema) to try to seek the Speaker’s guidance, but Mr Ndugai ordered him to sit down. After Mr Mnyika defied the order, Mr Ndugai directed that the lawmaker be thrown out of the debating chamber.

Also kicked out were Ms Ester Bulaya (Bunda-Chadema) and Ms Halima Mdee (Kawe-Chadema) after they escorted Mr Mnyika out as he was being frogmarched by parliament orderlies. The Privileges, Ethics and Powers Committee later concluded that the two MPs had undermined the Speaker’s authority and they were banned from Parliament for almost a year. Ms Bulaya and Ms Mdee have since challenged their expulsion in court.

The House was already highly polarised when Finance and Planning minister Phillip Mpango tabled the government’s Sh31.7 trillion budget on June 8, with opposition lawmakers accusing the Speaker of bullying them.

The Opposition’s presentation of its alternative budget received no live coverage on June 12 as on the same day attention was focused on State House, Dar es Salaam, where President John Magufuli received the findings of a second presidential committee appointed to investigate the mineral concentrates controversy.

As the House was debating the Budget, Mr Japhet Hasunga (CCM-Vwawa) tabled a motion to commend President Magufuli for his efforts to protect Tanzania’s natural resources. As expected, Parliament adopted the motion, thanks to CCM’s healthy majority.

There were delirious scenes a few days earlier when Dr Mpango presented the Budget. CCM MPs cheered him like a rock star during the entire duration of his two-hour speech, prompting Mr Ndugai to call the House to order on several occasions.

“I have never seen a budget that was as well received as this one in my entire political career,” Mr Ndugai quipped.

Speaking to The Citizen yesterday, Mr Hussein Bashe (Nzega Urban-CCM) said he learnt during the budget sitting that President Magufuli’s government does consider to MPs’ views, adding that some issues raised by lawmakers in the past were considered in the plan tabled by Dr Mpango.

“Party politics aside, it is a fact that the quality of debate in the House has improved significantly. We lost focus at some point, but in the end we managed to come up with a budget that is far better than the previous one,” he said.

Mr Bashe added that the government had shown understanding by agreeing to link agriculture and the industrialisation drive.

Some of the issues highlighted in the Budget which Mr Bashe hopes will boost productivity include reduction of corporate tax from 30 per cent to 10 per cent for companies specialising in the assembly of vehicles, tractors and fishing boats.

The government has also abolished VAT on importation of capital goods in order to reduce procurement and importation costs on machines and plants used in production.

Dr Mpango has also zero-rated VAT on ancillary transport services associated with goods in transit, while the Electronic and Postal Communications Act, 2010 was also amended to allow foreign investors to take part in initial public offerings (IPOs) of telecommunication firms.

Livestock keepers and farmers also received several incentives in the budget. “These are the issues we tirelessly advocated in the past. We hope that the government will also walk the talk when it comes to implementation,” Mr Bashe said.

Ms Magdalena Sakaya (Kaliua-CUF) echoed the CCM lawmaker’s similar sentiments, saying for the first time she had hope in the budget and bills brought before the House for debate.

“The government came up with fewer priorities. It also came up with well thought-out plans on how to finance the budget. That was why I supported the budget and bills unconditionally,” she said.

Apart from debating and approving the 2017/18 Budget, Parliament also passed a number of proposed laws, including the Natural Wealth and Resources Contracts (Review and Re-negotiation of Unconscionable Terms) Bill, 2017 and the Natural Wealth and Resources (Permanent Sovereignty) Bill, 2017.

The bills, supplemented by the Written Laws Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, 2017, seek to bring sweeping changes in the management of the country’s natural resources. They categorically state that natural resources belong to Tanzanians and must be utilised for the benefit of the population.

The bills also seek to make it illegal for investors to send complaints regarding investments in Tanzania to any court outside the country and that all grievances will be handled by the country’s legal system.

Under the proposed laws, Parliament will be empowered to endorse arrangements or agreements between the government and investors, while all past and prospective arrangements or agreements will be reviewed and renegotiated whenever Parliament deems fit. All the money obtained through natural resources will be kept in commercial banks within Tanzania and investors will be allowed to repatriate their dividends only.

The government will also own at least 16 per cent of shares in mining firms and the ownership will increase to 50 per cent with time. Exports of raw natural resources are also to be outlawed. Mr Kabwe said MPs should have put aside their political affiliation and ideologies and accord the mineral resources debate the importance it deserved.

“MPs need to change and learn how to debate and articulate issues even if they have contrasting viewpoints. Often, MPs make noise instead of talking. They argue instead of debating and they monologue instead of dialoguing,” he said.

Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa adjourned Parliament yesterday after a marathon three-month sitting.

He said the government would hunt down all those behind the killings in Kibiti, Rufiji and Mkuranga districts in Coast Region and bring them to justice.

“The government will hunt down all the suspects…they cannot hide forever, and justice will eventually prevail,” he said.

Mr Majaliwa added that said the government was taking both short-term and long-term measures to normalise the situation, noting the three districts now comprised a special police zone whose commander had already been appointed.

He also told the House that a number of areas were grappling with food shortages, adding that the government would no longer allow maize to be exported without permission.

Mr Majaliwa said the government would see to it that no pregnant woman died due to a lack of medicines, and directed health officers across the country to perform their duties diligently.

The health sector has been allocated Sh236 billion during the current financial year, with Sh33 billion being set aside for child vaccination and people with special needs.