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Tanzania: What the Mini-Reshuffle Means
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The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
OPINION
12 May 2008
Posted to the web 12 May 2008
Zephania Ubwani
Arusha
Some local political analysts believe that Saturday's mini Cabinet reshuffle was more than filling the post left vacant by embattled former Infrastructure Development minister Andrew Chenge who quit the post over corruption allegations.
Many people would wait to see how the new team moves to give the Government the much needed new lease of life, which is in dire need of competency and integrity.
Dr Shukuru Kawambwa's appointment has drawn the attention of some people not because he is taking over from Chenge, presently at the centre of an investigation by the UK's Serious Fraud Office.
The new Infrastructure Development minister takes over a giant ministry whose sub-sectors, particularly construction and aviation, have often been linked to major corruption scandals since the 1990s.
It remains to be seen how the soft-spoken minister would clean the Infrastructure Development "house" of its past and current black record to get it play its expected role in the country's economic development.
There has been a raging debate in many circles on how qualified or experienced one should be in order to head any particular Government ministry.
Dr Kawambwa, a former don at the College of Engineering and Technology at the University of Dar es Salaam, becomes the first engineer to head the ministry of Infrastructure at least as it is structured today.
The Bagamoyo legislator has headed three key ministries during the two and a half years he has been in President Jakaya Kikwete's Cabinet.
He joined the fourth phase Government in January 2006 as minister for Livestock Development, the first time a fully-fledged ministry was created for the sector since the early 1980s.
During his tenure there, he helped speed up various reforms in the sector initiated by his predecessors since 2000, and took time to address problems facing traditional livestock keepers.
In October 2006, he was made minister for Water and was there when the multi-billion shillings Water Sector Development Programme was launched and immediately gave priority to Dar es Salaam, vowing to have no mercy to corrupt officials manning water projects.
During one of his trips to Arusha, he advised incompetent and dishonest consultants and contractors not to seek contracts on water projects managed by the Government.
In yet another Cabinet reshuffle last February, Dr Kawambwa landed at the newly-created ministry of Communications, Science and Technology where he lasted for only three months.
But pronouncements he made there were enough indicators that he had major plans for the fast-growing sector.
The academician, who had once worked at the then Institute of Production Innovation (IPI) of UDSM, was in Arusha last week for the launch of the International Year of Planet Earth for Africa region.
He was conspicuous for his seriousness on how the continent should invest heavily in the training scientists and to allocate more funds for scientific research to spur development.
Other appointments made under the latest Cabinet reshuffle are also interesting. For Prof Peter Msolla who takes over the Ministry of Communications, Science and Technology, it is like piping into the past. He goes back to face recurrent students' protests, a problem which had dodged him during his two-year stint as minister for Higher Education,Science and Technology.
Ms Celina Kombani, is somebody to watch. She may have impressed many with her responses in the Parliament and seems to be conversant with the Local Government portfolio, indeed a giant ministry with a host of problems and prospects.
Her appointment would please women who last time felt left out in efforts to raise their numbers in Cabinet to 50-50 with men. Her promotion takes the percentage to just 23 per cent, a big gap from 30 per cent which is the minimum required of Tanzania.
Also going back home is Mr Stephen Wassira. This will be another term as minister for Agriculture, Food and Cooperatives, a post he held until last February when the Cabinet was dissolved.
Mr Wassira could be one of the longest serving legislators. He was an assistant minister for Agriculture in the early 1970s.
This writer accompanied him to one of his upcountry trips to Maswa and Bariadi districts in Shinyanga Region in April 1975. The trip was aimed at promoting the cultivation of cotton so that the country produces 200,000 bales a year.
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Today, Mr Wassira has to be reminded that cotton production in the country dropped by 100,000 bales last season. Projections to produce 300,000 bales did not materialise and instead the figure remained what was projected 33 years ago.
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