Parliament has asked the government to recover US$20.1 million (32bn/-)
that represents unpaid gas production revenue between 2004 and 2009, for which
PanAfrican Energy Tanzania Limited (PAT) has been singled out as the culprit.
PAT is a subsidiary of Orca Exploration Group.
Debating a statement on the natural gas sub sector, Parliament has in
addition told the government to ensure that
the company, many of whose
shoddy dealings were discovered by a House committee, pays interest for the money, basing on what they termed as
time value for money.
These developments have been prompted by findings of a probe undertaken
by the Parliamentary Committee on Energy and Minerals, covering operations of
the gas sub-sector as a whole last year.
The conduct of PAT, a firm contracted to drill gas at Songo Songo
Island in Lindi Region, featured in the probe, which exposed various
irregularities.
Presenting the government’s response on the irregularities, the
minister for Energy and Minerals, Mr William Ngeleja, told Parliament that the
government had formed a negotiating team to figure out how the colossal amount could
be recovered.
Mr Ngeleja said in his 43-page statement that the government had also engaged the Controller and Auditor
General (CAG) to audit the company’s financial management, following its
failure to account for another $35.4 million (56.6bn/-).
A member of the House committee for energy and minerals, Mr Charles
Mwijage (Muleba North-CCM), said apart from the financial irregularities, PAT
was also not transparent in a chain of its other businesses.
Debating the minister’s statement, committee chairman January Makamba
faulted the government’s move as non-definitive.
“We want the government to be specific by telling us how long it will
take to recover the money. We need to see the end result,” said the outspoken
Bumbuli MP on the ticket of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM).
He added that the Director of Criminal Investigation (DCI) should
also be assigned to mount an immediate investigation, to establish whether there are criminal aspects in the operations of
PanAfrican Energy Tanzania.
“What we have learnt from these pathetic revelations is that the nation
could be held to ransom by an investor,” Mr Makamba charged.
The legislator also faulted the government for its tendency of not
holding investors accountable, under the pretext of creating a conducive
investment environment.
“This should not be entertained. If an investor has breached investment
agreements, he should be shown the door,” fumed Mr Makamba.
Mr John Cheyo, the MP for
Bariadi East on the ticket of the United Democratic Party (UDP), praised the
committee for uncovering irregularities in energy and mining companies.
Mr. Cheyo, who is the chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Public
Accounts (PAC), remarked that recommendations by House sector committees would
be highly beneficial if the government took them up seriously.
He expressed misgivings over the appointment of a government
negotiating team for recovering the
$20.1million, expressing doubts on
whether the approach would yield the envisaged results.
The legislator stressed that natural resources should be exploited for
the benefit of Tanzanians, who should be protected against plunder with impunity by presumed investors.
Mr Cheyo lamented that it was an acute embarrassment for Tanzania to be labelled a poor country and to
bank on foreign aid, while it was the
third largest gold producer in Africa.
That would not be the case, he argued, if the country’s resources were harnessed
effectively and fairly, but were instead exposed to the whims of exploitative
foreigners.
Mr Cheyo proposed that the Attorney General should be held answerable
for all shoddy agreements that the government had entered with foreign
companies.
The shadow minister for Energy and Minerals, Mr John Mnyika
(Ubungo - Chadema), was pessimistic on whether the government
would pin PanAfrican Energy Tanzania Limited effectively, to facilitate
recovery of the money in question.
Mr Mnyika cited a recommendation by relevant parliamentary committees
on the Richmond power scandal in 2008, which the government has not implemented
to-date.
He said the government should plug all loopholes on tax evasion by
energy and mining investors that use offshore companies.
Source: The Citizen,www.thecitizen.co.tz, reported by Lucas Liganga in Dodoma
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