Wasira defends his stay in Board’s house

The Minister of State in President’s Office (Policy and Coordination) Steven Wasira has said that, the issues of letting him move out of the Sugar Board house located at Masaki in Dar es Salaam city which he occupied since 2006 is entirely to be organized by the State House Chief Secretary. Minister Wasira made a remark yesterday in a telephone interview when contacted for comments to see his reactions over the claims raised by the Standing Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) who queried the rationale of his illegal stay in a house without paying rent. The remarks by Minister Wasira has come a day after the PAC Chairman and the MP for Kigoma South (Chadema) Zitto Kabwe issued a directive to the Chairman of the Sugar Board in the country to facilitate his removal from the Board’s house. The decision by the PAC committee members is among the six deliberations which it has sanctioned to be accomplished by the sugar Board in their meeting that lasted for two hours. The PAC members arrived in such a decision after having discovered that Minister Wasira has been staying in a house free of charge since he occupied it up to now.  

The Minister of State in President’s Office (Policy and Coordination) Steven Wasira 

In the meeting, the Director General of the Sugar Board in the country Henry Semwanza admitted before the PAC members that, Minister Wasira was offered a house to stay in during the time he was serving as a Minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Co-operatives since 2006 up to 2010 when he was appointed into the current ministerial position. Elaborating more on his stay, Zitto noted that, “this is illegal as he is supposed to pay the house rent for the house does not belong to the government but rather to the Executive sugar Board which is a different entity”. In line with PAC’s decision, it has also instructed the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture to write a letter to the Chief Secretary of State to settle the outstanding house rents which could not be established, a copy of which should reach him after 72 hours from Friday. Otherwise, he also noted that, after paying the money and if the state or the government would like his minister continue staying in the house, an agreement between the State House and the sugar Board should be made so as to let the minister continue paying the house rent as usual instead of staying free of charge. Efforts by this paper to reach the State House Chief Secretary Ombeni Sefue for clarification over the matter proved futile as his mobile phone kept on ringing without dual response.

Kiteto Hospital to undergo treatment of prostate cancer

The Tobora Town Council (TTC) has entered into agreement with four medical experts from Switzerland who would be carrying two major operations for prostate cancer and hydrocele testis at a regional Kiteto hospital located in Tabora town, these are among the serious diseases affecting mostly aged men. The hospital is among the few recently upgraded into a magnificent scale after undergoing huge renovation works by the ministry of Health and given the status of being among the few referral hospitals in the country. A Member of Parliament for Tabora Urban, Ismail Aden Rage said on Friday last week in Dar es Salaam that, the ministry of Health and Social Services has accomplished all the procedures that would allow the experts to undergo the operations which are due to start in March this year. 

Ismail Aden Rage, a Member of Parliament for Tabora Urban

He told a Press Conference that, the agreement entered with the experts would run exclusively in five years’ time during which people would be checked freely and that, the experts would come with their own medical apparatuses for that purpose. Rage noted that, being an MP for the area he has also asked the government to institute nursing training courses at the hospital which currently is used as a training ground for medical practitioners. Explaining about the two diseases, he said that, there are signs of many men who suffers the diseases after undergoing a research in the region and that is why the management of the town council resorted for help from outside the country. According to him, the Kiteto hospital would be the second hospital in the country to have undergoing major operations on prostate cancer after the Aga Khan hospital in Dar es Salaam which he noted that if is not treated earlier it results into deaths. The Kiteto hospital was established by the British government during colonial era and before that, the ground on which the hospital was constructed was used as a military camp for the German during the First World War.

PAC orders Wasira be removed from sugar Board house, or else pay the rent

The Parliamentary standing Accounts Committee (PAC) yesterday ordered the Chairman of the sugar Board in the country to immediately issue a stop over to the Minister of State in President’s Office responsible for policy and coordination Steven Wasira from occupying the Board’s house. The decision by the PAC ‘s committee is among the six deliberations which have been sanctioned to the sugar Board in their  meeting with the PAC committee members chaired by Zitto Zuberi Kabwe who is also a Member of Parliament for Kigoma South (Chadema). The PAC members arrived in such a decision after having discovered that Minister Wasira is staying in a house free of charge since 2006 and up to now.   

Mr.Zitto Zuberi Kabwe.

  

In last week’  meeting the PAC Chairman Zitto noted that, minister Wasira was offered a house which is located at Masaki suburb in Dar es Salaam city on which to stay during the time he was serving as a Minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Co-operatives since 2006 up to 2010 when he was appointed into the current ministerial position. Elaborating more on his stay, Zitto noted that, “this is illegal as he is supposed to pay the house rent for the house does not belong to the government but rather to the Executive sugar Board whose jurisdiction is mandated by the ministry of Agriculture”. In view of this, however the PAC chairman Zitto has instructed the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture to write a letter to the Chief Secretary of State Ombeni Sefue in order to let the state house pay the outstanding house rent to be accounted since the time when Wasira occupied the house. Otherwise, he also noted that, after paying the money and if the state or the government would like his minister continue staying in the house, an agreement between the State House and the sugar Board should be made so as to let the minister continue paying the house rent as usual instead of staying free of charge.

Under aged mothers a cause of high child mortality rate, says a medical expert

Mothers who conceive at a premature age of between 16 and 20 years are risked to lose their children or even themselves due to panic which overcomes them while giving birth bearing the fact that are younger, a medical expert has said. Dr. Delila Moshi who is currently in charge of the neonatal intensive-care unit (NICU) at Mwananyamala referral Hospital in Dar es Salaam city said on Wednesday this week that, most of these mothers do not take basic precautionary measures required of them when maintaining their pregnancy up to the time of delivery. Dr. Delila said in an exclusive interview that, as it is their first pregnancy, most of them have a tendency of shunning away from attending clinics whereby they could be enlightened on the basic principles of child health education and how to take care of themselves before and after child births. She said most of them lack proper education that could guide them into becoming enlightened on how they are supposed to do whenever are pregnant, and what steps could they undergo through in order to save their infants from being attacked by airborne diseases immediately after child birth. The medical expert was contacted the specialist and carried a round up survey with a view to know why both child and maternal mortality rates are increasing in the country, a factor which ironically has led to absolute failure by the government to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) in the aspect of child and maternal health care. Dr. Delila mentioned other factors are due to failure of government which does not provide enough medical working facilities including drugs  in its hospitals to take care of the likely infected infants who most of them are affected by pneumonia and meningitis which kills them more quickly in early months after delivery. Elaborating about her unit to which she is in charge, Dr. Delila noted that, the situation over there is so pathetic as there are no enough space to take care of infants as per the medical directives.   

However she clarified that, the neonatal ward at the hospital has two large rooms each one is consisting of 9 beds on which are sometimes forced to place three mothers with their newly borne babies on each bed otherwise the rest have to sleep down for lack of beds. She said sometimes children are born up to 160 per day making it difficult to arrange for their accommodation, she said adding that reasons are due to the influx of expectant mothers who comes for delivery at the hospital. Earlier, a specialist for women diseases Dr. Augustine Manyanga at the hospital and clarified some factors that led to the mortality rates that include profuse bleeding while giving birth  an aspect which he said is uncontrollable if a patient is anemic, a state of having less blood content. Other reasons he noted are High blood pressure that causes ‘Eclampisia’ resulting into the infections on human brains. According to him, this is dangerous if not treated on time brain that affects brains He motioned other factors as due to Illegal abortions, failure to transport expectant mothers to the hospital on time as most of them dies on their way to the hospital, and such cases are numerous in rural areas where people are engulfed with poverty stricken situation. Despite government efforts to remedy the situation, still there is a wide shortage of Midwife staff  coupled by insufficient number of medical clinics, as the situation is more serious in most rural areas in the country has exacerbated the high extent of the mortality rates. According to him, the current statistics of the mortality rates on women stands at 454 in every 100,000 child deliveries, which he says is worse in rural areas. He therefore suggests that, the government should do all it can in order to increase the required staff and concentrate more in rural areas whereby health knowledge about child delivery is still inadequate as most people perpetrates their minds on witchcraft beliefs.

JK promises descent staff quarters for TPDF soldiers

President Jakaya Kikwete has said that his government is planning to upgrade the living standards of the unmarried soldiers of Tanzania People’s Defense Forces (TPDF) who stays in single quarters and build modern and decent houses for them. Kikwete made the call on Saturday last week in Dar es Salaam at a function whereby he inaugurated 50 newly erected storey buildings for TPDF staff at Gongo La Mbotto on the outskirts of the city. The function was also attended by Commander of Defense Forces General Davis Mwamunyange, Minister for Defense Dr. Hussein Mwinyi and Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner Sadiq Meck Sadiq among the dignitaries. These are among 6,064 projected residential houses for TPDF officers’ staff quarters to be constructed countrywide as part of the government’s plans to relocate all soldiers who stay in civilian residential houses and move them into their special military camps. The 50 storey buildings which were handed over to TPDF yesterday have been constructed by a Chinese based Construction Company, Shanghai Construction Group (SCG) and in total will be occupied by 400 households. Each house is designed to be occupied by eight families in a self-contained compartment which is consisting of seven rooms in total, three of which are bed rooms including a master bed room. Other rooms are the sitting room, bathroom, washroom and a kitchen room. In his speech, Kikwete thanked the constructing company on time completion of the project and at the same time, passed a word of caution to military soldiers to keep clean the surroundings bearing in mind the fact that, the houses are of the modern magnificent scale. 

Tanzania's President Jakaya Kikwete gestures while addressing a public rally

Elaborating about the implementation of TPDF staff house project which currently is underway in nine regions in the country, the Minister for Defense Dr. Mwinyi said that, about 1,160 houses have been completed and are already handed over TPDF in Dar es Salaam region. He said other 1,128 houses are also finished and these are expected to be handed over to TPDF end of this month. Either he noted that, a total of 840 houses currently in construction in Coast region are nearing completion by mid this year. He also noted that, the construction of the 320 houses will take place in Pemba Island and that the Zanzibar President and the Chairman of the Revolutionary Council Dr. Mohammed Shein laid a foundation stone last week to signify the commencement as part of the 51^st anniversary celebration of the Revolution of Zanzibar. Either he affirmed that, the construction of TPDF staff houses is going on Morogoro (304) Tanga (128) Dodoma (376) and in Arusha are (552) houses is going well and is expected to be completed end of this year. On his part, the Chief of Defense Forces (CDF) General Davis Mewamunyange thanked the government for being dedicated to solve various problems facing the TPDF including the new working tools for the army which will enable facilitates the TPDF’s operations. Meanwhile, the TPDF project was signed by the government in a move to help solve the houses shortages for military officers. The project being implemented by a Chinese form intends to ensure that all military officers are housed in barracks by 2017 with the whole project expecting to cost $ 300 million whereby $ 285 million is funds from Exim Bank China while $ 15 million will b e provided by Tanzania government.