Saturday 30 May 2009

Usefulness of Uhuru Torch grows: Shein

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Patty Magubira in Mwanza

Tanzanians need the Uhuru Torch to bring hope, love and respect to the country now than ever before, Vice-President, Dr Ali Mohamed Shein, said yesterday.

He observed shortly before lighting the torch at Kirumba stadium in Mwanza City that ongoing political and socio-economic changes in the country called for the torch to symbolically shine on the country.

The freedom and light symbol was first lit on top of Mt Kilimanjaro (5,890m) in 1961 to shine on the country and across its borders. It was to bring hope where there is despair, love where there is enmity and respect where there is hatred.

"We need the torch to remind us on the need to adhere to the tenets of the symbol stipulated in the wise words uttered by the Father of the Nation, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, before independence," Dr Shein explained.

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Kikwete set launch giant water project

Fra The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Paulina David in Mwanza

President Jakaya Kikwete is scheduled to commission an ambitious water project at its Ihelele intake in Misungwi district tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the Vice-President, Dr Ali Mohamed Shein, is also scheduled to light the Uhuru torch in Mwanza City today.

The Sh252 billion worth first phase of the water project to use the country's own funds is expected to supply water from Lake Victoria to Shinyanga Municipality and Kahama town in Shinyanga Region.

project, being undertaken by two contractors from China and supervised by Norconsult, would also supply water to 54 semi-arid villages.

They are situated in Misungwi and Kwimba districts in Mwanza region as well as Shinyanga Rural and Kahama districts.

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Wednesday 27 May 2009

Regions set up task force to drive tourism strategy

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Patty Magubira in Mwanza

Three regions have formed a task force to promote tourism in northern Tanzania during the forthcoming Karibu Travel and Tourism Fair (KTTF) in Arusha.

The global tourism fete that attracts over 200 exhibitors from all over the world will this year run from June 5 to 7 at the Kisongo Prison grounds on the outskirts of Arusha town.

Tourism stakeholders in the Lake Zone will be among the exhibitors during the fair, ranked the second most important African travel and tourism fair after the Indaba in South Africa.

"We want to use the exhibition to promote tourism in the Lake Zone region, which has for a long time now been under utilised,"said Ms Mary Kalikawe, a member of the regional task force.

Despite its proximity to the Serengeti National Park, most visitors prefer travelling from Arusha to watch game in the park to visiting from Mwanza in the Lake Zone region.

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Albino girl makes history pageant

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Patty Magubira in Mwanza

An albino girl is taking part in the Miss Vodacom Tanzania for the first time in the history of the beauty pageant in the country.

Twenty-four-year-old Grace Wabanu is amongst the 15 contestants vying for the title in Mwanza.

She has joined other contenders at the Miss Mwanza camp, ready for the competition scheduled for early next month at the Kirumba stadium in Mwanza city.

The sky seems to be the limit now for the Saint Augustine University of Tanzania (Saut) undergraduate student after she emerged the first runner-up in the Miss Sengerema beauty pageant held in the district.

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Monday 25 May 2009

Uganda gets new cargo ferry

From Daily Monitor, Kampala, Uganda
By Gerald Bareebe

The Minister of State for Works and Transport, Eng. John Byabagambi yesterday flagged off a new cargo ferry on Lake Victoria, which is meant to ease transport between Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.

The ferry, MV Patricia, has a capacity of 100 tonnes of goods and will operate between Jinja, Ssese Island, Kisumu, Mwanza and Port Bell.

Victoria Marine Company owns the ferry but it will be operated and maintained by its sister company, Power Marine.

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Saturday 23 May 2009

Voters panic as D-day draws near

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By The Citizen Reporter, Busanda

Panic gripped residents of Busanda constituency yesterday following the deployment of 195 more police personnel in the constituency two days before its by-election.

The law enforcers arrived here at around 2:00p.m. yesterday aboard three buses, apparently to beef up security during the by-election tomorrow.

A number of residents of the constituency interviewed immediately after the arrival of the police personnel expressed fears of the possibility for the law enforcers being used to threaten the electorate to vote for a particular candidate.

The arrival of the police personnel makes 300 the number of law enforcers deployed in the constituency, Mwanza acting regional police commander Elias Kalinga said.

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Tuesday 19 May 2009

Fake goods destroyed in Tanzania

From East African Business Week, Dar es Salaam
Written by JAMES MWAKISYALA

Counterfeit imports worth US$ 12,000 were destroyed in Dar es Salaam last week

They were destroyed by the Fair Competition Commission (FCC) at Kinyamwezi rubbish dump after being intercepted at Dar es Salaam Port.

The imports comprised extension cables, radios, oil and air filters and mobile phone accessories.

They had been imported by three firms: King Crown Import and Export Limited, Mwanza Iward and Habas Magreth, and Haji Mwajuma Ibrahim.

The destruction was overseen by FCC staff, the police and media personnel.

The FCC Legal Officer, Laiton Mhesa, who supervised the torching of the imports said the three importers were also fined TShs5 million (around $4600) and paid for the cost of destruction in accordance with the Merchant Marks Act of 1963. The importers lost their goods after they had paid import duty as well.

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Saturday 16 May 2009

EYE SPY: Adieu peace and tranquility!

From ThisDay, Dar es Salaam
By ADAM LUSEKELO

ON the front pages of some paper yesterday I saw pictures of some young CCM toughs, called commandos, wearing ninja-like balaclavas and nglasses. They were throwing their weight around in the Busanda constituency in Mwanza.

Forced to the ground was a Chadema supporter. Now we know pictures usually don’t lie. There is a nauseating lie about the much-parroted peace and tranquility in our country. Now we know where the stolen billions are channeled into. Some guys are running illegal private armies. 


If the CCM shows the way by outright hiring of thugs to force people to love the party, then others will follow suit! Then we will need just a spark to have an explosion.

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Friday 15 May 2009

Police refute CCM hate speech claims

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Patty Magubira, Mwanza

Police in Mwanza have dismissed claims by CCM the opposition Chadema has embarked on "provocative campaigning" ahead of the Busanda by-election on May 24.

CCM deputy secretary general Gorge Mkuchika last week alleged that a senior Chadema official, Mr Zitto Kabwe, had directed opposition supporters at a rally to burn the ruling party's flag.

But refuting the claims yesterday, acting regional police commander Elias Kalinga said campaigning for the by-election was going on "peacefully apart from a few cases of lawlessness."

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Wednesday 13 May 2009

State-owned boats said to pollute lake Victoria

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Paulina David, Mwanza

Private marine vessels operators in Lake Victoria have accused State-owned boats for allegedly polluting the lake.

The transporters said they were surprised to see the Infrastructure Ministry organising a seminar on conservation of the lake and ocean environment for them, when Government owned vessels were largely to blame for polluting the lake.

An expert with the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), Mr Robin Maseke, said vessels belonging to the ministry were not furnished with facilities for storage of human waste, thus pump the waste into the lake.

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Restore the diesel subsidy

From The New Vision, Kampala, Uganda
By David Muwanga

“The Government should invest money in a modern railway network and buy more ferries for the Dar es Salaam-Mwanza-Portbell route.”

THE Government should restore the diesel subsidy for industrial generators until power supply is sustainable, the Uganda Manufacturers Association (UMA) has said.

In their contribution to the 2009/2010 budget proposals, they said although power supply had improved, there were rampant power fluctuations that had led to loss of goods and property.

“The demand has surpassed supply thus leading to poor quality power supply,” they argued. The producers said pharmaceutical, plastics and textile firms had incurred great losses due to inconsistent power.

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Monday 11 May 2009

High fuel prices harm airlines

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Samuel Kamndaya

High tax rates on aviation fuel makes airlines operating in Tanzania less competitive than their counterparts in other East African Community (EAC) member states. The Precision Air, chief executive officer (CEO), Mr Alfonse Kioko said in Dar es Salaam during the weekends that with high tax rates, aviation fuel prices are 30 per cent more expensive in Tanzania than they are in Kenya and Uganda.

'Due to various charges on fuel, it is more expensive hear by up to 30 per cent compared to Kenya and Uganda but when we ask dealers, they cite taxation as the major obstacle,' he said.

He said however that operators are currently dialoguing with the government to have the taxes reduced to turn Tanzania into a cheaper destination. It is hoped that such a move will also help to attract increased numbers of tourists in the country.

Mr Kioko was speaking to reporters in presence of the airline's other senior officials, shortly before launching the airline's new ATR72-500 aircraft that will be plying between Mwanza and Dar es Salaam. The 70-seater aircraft, named 'Mwanza' is the third in a $129million order deal between an Italian-French aircraft manufacturer known as Avions de Transport Regional (ATR) on one side and Precision Air on the other side.

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Wednesday 6 May 2009

Three get 20 years for forcing girl 13, to sex with dog

From The Citizen, Dar es Salaam
By Paulina David, Mwanza

Three employees of a gold mining company have been sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment after a Mwanza court found them guilty of forcing a girl to have sex with a dog.

Mwanza Resident Magistrate Gadiel Mariki convicted the employees of Barrick Exploration Africa Limited (BEAL) based in Sengerema District, ending a marathon case that gripped the country's attention.

Those jailed are a young woman, Shija Madata, 18, Job Mlama, 30, and Anicet Edward, 30, who was the dog's caretaker. The trio were jointly found guilty of forcing a 13-year old schoolgirl to engage in an unnatural act with the dog in March last year.

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Read article from The Sun, London, UK >>

Sunday 3 May 2009

It`s time to focus on newcomers at Taifa Cup

From IPPMedia, Dar es Salaam
By Fred Ogot

Tanzania Breweries Limited (TBL) recently injected 58.3m/- to support the annual inter-regional soccer championship popularly known as Taifa Cup, but that praiseworthy gesture geared at soccer development may be undermined by certain negative technical trends.

While presenting the cheque to Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) Secretary-General Frederick Mwakalebela, Kilimanjaro Brand Manager Oscar Shelukindo said that the company had donated the money earlier, as a catalyst for the tournament to run smoothly and professionally.

The event will kick off simultaneously in six mainland centres - Mbeya, Mwanza, Arusha, Ruvuma, Tanga and Dodoma.

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Saturday 2 May 2009

Having a ball!

From dentistry.co.uk - London, UK

Register in advance for a complimentary ticket to BDTA Dental Showcase 2009 between now and 30 June 2009 for a chance to win tickets to the Bridge2Aid Charity Ball for you and up to 10 members of your dental practice.

The Bridge2Aid Charity Ball is taking place during the evening of Friday 13 November 2009 at the Hilton Metropole, within the grounds of the NEC, Birmingham.

The event, sponsored by Henry Schein Minerva Dental, FMC, Dentsply and the BDTA is designed to raise money for Bridge2Aid, the charity running Hope Dental Centre, a training and community development programme in Mwanza, Tanzania and is expected to attract hundreds of people from the dental industry.

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