HIDDEN TANZANIAN MILLIONS IN SWISS BANKS - CUSTOMERS TO BE REVEALED?

 Full dossier on Swiss billions ready for MPs

The Clerk of the National Assembly, Dr Thomas Kashillilah, said the House was waiting for official confirmation from the government before it puts the issue in its timetable. 

By The Citizen Reporter

Posted  Thursday, February 12  2015 at  08:45

 In Summary

The move came two years after a parliamentary inquiry first called for action.
Dar es Salaam. Tanzanians will soon know who has how much cash in offshore accounts following reports that investigations by a special committee are over.

The team was formed to probe millions of dollars believed to have been hidden in Swiss banks.
Addressing editors in Dar es Salaam yesterday, Attorney General George Masaju said the final report would be tabled in Parliament any time. The House will then debate the document and decide on the next course of action.

The AG’s revelation comes in the wake of the release of leaked data this week that shows that 99 Tanzanians wired $114 million (Sh205 billion) to HSBC Bank in Switzerland from 2006 to 2007.

“The team that was picked to investigate Tanzanians who have allegedly deposited money in foreign banks has already completed its work,” Mr Masaju told journalists yesterday. “But because the work was ordered by the Parliament, I am not at liberty to reveal the content of the report here.”

The Clerk of the National Assembly, Dr Thomas Kashillilah, said the House was waiting for official confirmation from the government before it puts the issue in its timetable. He added: “If the government tells us that it has completed the work and it is ready to table the report, we will make sure that we include it in our schedules.” Last year, the government sought help from Switzerland in investigating stolen government assets and illicit money stashed in offshore bank accounts. The move came two years after a parliamentary inquiry first called for action.

The immediate AG, Mr Frederick Werema, said then that the government was working with the International Centre for Asset Recovery--a technical advisory group based in Basel, Switzerland--to investigate several cases of fraud, bribery and corruption where money may have been secretly funelled overseas.

The government investigations were prompted by a private motion by Kigoma North MP Zitto Kabwe in 2012 asking the government to investigate public sector corruption and establish who might be hiding millions of dollars in foreign bank accounts.
Mr Masaju’s comments come at a time when leaked reports show that some 99 Tanzanians wired $114 million (Sh205 billion) to HSBC Bank in Switzerland within a year. According to the data, which has been independently verified by the US-based watchdog International Consortium for Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), these Tanzanians together operated 286 bank accounts.

Kadhi’s Court

In other reports, Mr Masaju told editors that the discussion on the establishment of Kadhi’s Court has been dominated by misconceptions among key players and the general public--leading to public concern that the issue is being pushed by leaders with a hidden agenda. “I don’t know where the fear (of Kadhi’s Courts) stems from because they have been in operation in the country for the past two years and we have not witnessed any problem with them.”

According to Mr Masaju, several groups have simply not understood the essence of the amendments the government intends to make and that was why the bill was withdrawn to make room for wider consultations. The government also intends to launch a public awareness campaign with an eye on the referendum, which will be held on April 30. The newly-appointed AG said a bill that was earlier tabled in Parliament--which gave the National Electoral Commission (NEC) powers to announce the referendum date--has been amended and the powers to do so now rest with the President.

He also brushed aside recent comments that the Referendum Act was invalid because it had not been ratified by Zanzibar’s House of Representatives. The Zanzibar Constitution does not list ratifying of laws made by the Union Parliament as the responsibility of the House of Representatives. All that is required, according to Mr Masaju, is that a law enacted by the Union Parliament be tabled before the House as notification.”

Meanwhile, Mr Masaju warned political parties that have been forming security groups that doing so was illegal. He added: “It doesn’t matter whether they are the white, red, green, purple or colourless brigades. Political parties should know that maintaining order has been legally entrusted to the Police Force. No one in this country is allowed to form such groups.”