Major shake up as Samia rings in the changes
Dar es Salaam. President Samia Suluhu Hassan yesterday reshuffled Permanent Secretaries and other key top government positions as she gets the sixth phase government on the right footing.
The reshuffle of Permanent Secretaries comes only four days after she restructured the Cabinet that was appointed by her predecessor, the late John Magufuli.
Speaking during the swearing in ceremony of the newly appointed Chief Secretary, ministers and their deputies on Thursday last week, President Hassan directed the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) to stop frustrating businesses by milking them dry and instead expand the tax base to raise monthly revenue collections to Sh2 trillion. Currently, the taxman collects an average of Sh1.4 trillion per month.
“Using a lot of force in collection of tax, closing taxpayers’ bank accounts, forcefully taking money from their accounts, just because the law allows you to do so, is unacceptable,” stressed President Hassan.
And, in an apparent desire to come up with pro-business policies, President Hassan shifted Mr Dotto James from the position of Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Planning and moved him to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The President then appointed Mr Emmanuel Tutuba as new Treasury Permanent Secretary.
In another interesting appointment, President Hassan yesterday picked Mr Alphayo Kidata as new TRA Commissioner General to replace Dr Edwin Mhede, who was appointed to head the tax body in June 2019.
Mr Kidata had previously worked as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Land, Housing and Human Settlements Development where he is credited for his tireless and hard work against corrupt land cartels.
But in December 2015, former President John Magufuli moved him to TRA as acting Commissioner General. He became Commissioner General in March 2016 but one year later, he was appointed State House Permanent Secretary.
In January 2018, he was given an ambassadorial title that saw him being sworn-in to become Tanzania’s ambassador to Canada.
In November 2018, he was recalled and in September 2019, he was appointed as Regional Administrative Secretary for Mtwara.
In her reshuffle, President Hassan re-appointed some of the people who had been dropped by her predecessor and also fired or shifted some of the late Magufuli’s lieutenants.
In July 2018, former President Magufuli fired the then Director General of the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), Prof Godius Kahyarara and replaced him with Mr William Erio but in yesterday’s turn of events, President Hassan appointed the former University of Dar es Salaam don as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (Investment).
She has also rescinded the appointment of Mr Erio at NSSF and replaced him with Mr Masha Mshomba.
The President also dropped the Director General for Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA), Mr James Kilaba and replaced him with Dr Jabir Bakari Kuwe who is the immediate former chief executive officer for the e-Government Agency.
Among other notable missing names on the list of Permanent Secretaries include that of the former Natural Resources Tourism boss, Dr Aloyce Nzuki who had been replaced by Dr Allan Kijazi at the ministry.
