Vicky Pattison dresses in skintight bandeau dress as she reveals before and after body pics... dropping from size 16 to 8 in a matter of months!

She caught people's attention this summer, when she was spotted frolicking on the beach, looking a lot 'curvier' than usual.

But Vicky Pattison is clearly out to prove what a bit of dieting can do as she shows off her post-Geordie Shore before and after weight loss, where she dropped from a size 16 to an 8. 

The 25-year-old's strict weight loss programme saw the reality TV star loose the pounds in a matter of months - and is literally half the woman she used to be.

No plan to extend runway in Arusha

There are no immediate plans to extend the Arusha airport runway although a new apron will be built, the airport manager, Ms Esther Dede, has said.

Also in pipeline is the construction of a new terminal building to accommodate the increase in passenger traffic, but the length of the runway will remain the same for now.

She said the expansion and modernisation of facilities at the Arusha airport are contained in its master plan whose implementation is awaiting availability of funds.

Under it, a new terminal building would be constructed behind the current one and hence give enough space for the taxi ways for the increasing number of planes landing and taking off from there. Ms Dede was responding to questions on whether the airport runway would be extended to cater for large aircraft after last week’s unannounced landing of an Ethiopian jet at the tiny airfield.

“We have a master plan for the airport. But I have not seen anywhere in it that the runway will be extended. This airport will continue to cater for small and medium range aircraft,” she said.

She acknowledged in calls from stakeholders in the travel industry for the expansion of one of the busiest airports in the country to enable it to handle larger planes.

This 94-Yr-Old Woman Waited For Her Solider Husband To Return From War For 63 Yrs!

Army Sgt. 1st Class Joseph E. Gantt went off to war 63 years ago, leaving behind a wife who never gave up on his return.

On Friday, 94-year-old Clara Gantt stood up from her wheelchair and wept in the cold before the flag-draped casket. Sgt. Gantt was finally home.
The faithful widow spoke to the journalists saying,
"He told me if anything happened to him he wanted me to remarry. I told him no, no. Here I am, still his wife."
Gantt was a field medic who went missing in action on Nov. 30, 1950 during the Korean War while serving with Battery C, 503rd Field Artillery, 2nd Infantry Division, according to the Defense Prisoner of 
War/Missing Personnel Office in Washington, D.C.

You messed with the wrong reptile! Python loses death match with Florida alligator and ends up in its JAWS

Parks officials in Florida have been fighting a losing battle to rid the Everglades of invasive Burmese pythons, not realizing that their secret weapon may be the state reptile.

A remarkable photo posted on the Facebook page of Everglades National Park Monday depicted a death match between a massive gator and a python - with the former coming out on top.

The picture of the tenacious reptile devouring its slithering opponent was accompanied by a post offering some information about the battle between the two critters. 

Pastoralists hail Sacking of ministers

 Livestock herding communities and activists supporting them are happy about last Friday’s cabinet shake-up in which four ministers were sacked over alleged atrocities committed against the pastoralists.

“I am happy because some of my brothers were victims of excessive force used by the police and game rangers”, said Mr. Elikarim Mangi from Babati when reached on phone.

He said it was appalling that nothing had been done by the relevant authorities over the law enforcers and local administrators who took law into their hands on pretext of implementing Operation Tokomeza.

“What the president did was a good job. Some ministers are not serious with the people’s problems”, he told The Citizen on Sunday, citing cases of beatings and killings of innocent livestock keepers in various parts of the country.

Mr Mangi, who commutes between his timber business mart and large herds of cattle in Ruvuma region, said Manyara leaders should be made to account from the recent death of a woman in Babati district allegedly by the police.

Rev Elibariki Gayewi of the Lutheran Church in Hanang district said the sacking of ministers was an indication that the government was now serious in addressing the problems facing the people, particularly the nomadic pastoralists after being quiet for a long time.

“I am seeing this to be a great change for the good. It is a good sign for the government”, he stated, noting that he was aware of atrocities or beatings committed under Operation Tokomeza against members of the Barbaig community near Tarangire National Park and in Morogoro.

Christmas really is for giving: Kelly Brook gifts fans a n#de photo of herself just in time for the big day

The model shared the goofy online video with her Instagram fans which saw her face placed onto the body of a dancing Santa's little helper.

Sporting red stripey stockings and a small hat, the 34-year-old certainly looked different compared with the racy, nude snap.

She captioned the short clip: 'Happy Holidays', which received more than 700 likes in less than 24 hours.

Hard times ahead for government

The Speaker of the National assembly, Ms Anne Makinda, has told ministers to change to escape frequent cabinet reshuffles.

Speaking shortly before adjourning the 14th Parliament seating yesterday, Ms Makinda noted that MPs, through their standing committees, have shown that they were determined to keep the ministers on their toes.

“As much as we will continue to have standing committee reports here, be assured that we will be hearing of scandals each year if you ministers continue to live and operate in the old days. We need to change,” Ms Makinda said. She spoke after prime Minister, Mr Mizengo Pinda presented his speech to conclude the Bunge session.

The Speaker said what had happened should be a wake up call to ministers whom he warned against the tendency of depending on their subordinates and executives on sensitive public issues.

Ms Makinda said changes instituted in the budget cycle also calls for change in government operations if the new system is to succeed. “If the government does not change in its operation, the new budget cycle will be meaningless,” she said of the approach for Parliament to reverse the old system of only approving funds without fisrt establishing how the previsous year’s were used.

She noted for instance that reports show that only small fraction of development funds have been released in the first quarter of the financial year while the Parliament asked the government borrow money to ensure smooth take off of the new system.

“But, if we continue to depend on TRA (Tanzania Revenue Authority) and Finance Ministry alone, we will not reach anywhere… the tax collector should also ensure that he doesn’t stop his work because under the new system the Finance Act allows him to do so from July 1 each year,” she said.

In his Bunge adjourning speech, Premier Pinda thanked the MPs for the in-depth debate which led to the resignation of four ministers. He also thanked the ministers for accepting to take responsibility for cruelties revealed by the Parliament Committee which investigated the implementation of Opereseheni Tokomeza Ujangili.

On food situation in the country, Mr Pinda noted that food inflation has started to increase as the country comes off the harvesting season.

But he said food availability was still promising noting that assessment of food situation conducted in October and November this year established that a total of 828,063 face food shortage.

“These people need a total of 23,312 tonnes up to February next year,” he said noting however that the nation has enough reserves to sustain the needs.

Mr Pinda adjourned the Parliament to May 6, next year when  it will meet for the marathon Budget 

Bunge drops sim card tax as mobile firms condemned

Parliament yesterday scrapped the controversial sim card tax and agreed to raise excise duty on telecommunication services by a further 2.5 per cent. The move will raise internet costs and puts to an end six months of confrontations between wananchi and pressure groups and the government.

The intention of mobile phone companies, which also opposed the sim card tax and moved to court to block TRA from imposing it, came into question as MPs revealed that the firms had agreed to “donate” Sh30bn to the government in return.

The fate of the court case, now with the Revenue Appeals Tribunal, remains unclear as the move to scrap the tax means there will be no reason to go to court. The firms lost the first case at the Tax Revenue Board and lodged an appeal last week.    But even as the MPs approved the Excise Management and Tariff (Amendment) Bill 2013, they warned the government about its tendency to ignore advice on matters that touch on the lives of the people.

The amendments moved by the Finance deputy minister, Ms Saada Mkuya, dropped the Sh1,000 monthly sim card tax, subjecting the government to a Sh148 billion deficit in revenue collection projections.

To compensate for this, the government proposed a rise in excise duty on telecommunication services from 14.5 per cent to 17 per cent.

According to Ms Mkuya, the higher excise duty should enable the government to net Sh148 billion. The mobile telecommunication industry has agreed to give the government the Sh30 billion balance. But MPs have raised questions over the generosity of the companies that, only few months ago, said they were incapable of collecting the Sh1,000 sim card tax on behalf of the government.

“Why, all of a sudden, have the companies become so generous that they have volunteered to give the government Sh30 billion when it is the same companies that were protesting the sim card tax?” asked Mr Rajab Mbarouk Mohammed (Ole–CUF).

Other MPs opposed the excise duty hike, noting that though they wanted the government to raise money for water and electricity in the rural areas, the move would add to the burden of Tanzanians.

“During the budget we opposed the increase to 14.5 per cent because it would hurt poor Tanzanians,” said Ms Christine Lissu as she tabled the opposition speech, “but today the government wants to raise it to 17 per cent while the rate does not exceed 12 per cent in the rest of East Africa.”

Mr Salehe Pamba (Pangani–CCM) said the government needs to get into the habit of involving stakeholders before making decisions, especially on taxation issues that directly affect the people.

Mr James Mbatia (Nominated–NCCR-Mageuzi) said the sim card tax conflict is evidence of how uncoordinated the government is.

“It is amazing that the Finance minister (William) Mgimwa, who backed the law that introduced the sim card tax, disowned the same law a few days after the protests started,” he said.

Shock as medical registration fees up by 600pc

Patients here will now pay six times more in charges at mid-level public hospitals as the authorities move to decongest Muhimbili National Hospital, which serves more than 1,000 people every day.

Mwananyamala hospital, in Kinondoni district, has hiked the registration fee from Sh1,000 to Sh6,000 for out-patients beginning December 1.

The Citizen on Sunday has learnt that Temeke and Amana hospitals will also announce new fees soon as the government seeks to turn them into regional referral hospitals. The move has caught many city dwellers unawares and concerns have been raised over the state of affairs at health centres and dispensaries, which face acute shortage of medicine and personnel.

Many of the over four million city residents who are poor will struggle to raise the new fees at the designated referral facilities. They are expected to throng the lower facilities that still maintain their registration fees at Sh1,000.

In a spot check at Mwananyamala, The Citizen on Sunday met patients protesting the rise in the fees. They lamented that the new charge was way too much for a government hospital. A notice pinned at the hospital announced the new fees and change in status. Patients with referral letters from public health centres will pay Sh3,000 in registration fees.

Those without such documents will pay double the amount, according to the notice. On Wednesday, brothers Mohammed and Abdalah Mwinjuma from Makumbusho left without treatment when confronted with the changes. They claimed they had neither the information nor the money demanded. The brothers have over the years relied on Mwananyamala as it is the health centre nearest to their home. “My brother (Abdalah) is ill and I have brought him straight here,” said Mohammed as they walked out. “Now I am told I have to pay Sh6,000 because we don’t have a referral letter. We have not been attended to.”

Lucy Charles had a referral, though, and had been cleared to see a doctor after paying Sh3,000. But she still complained that the amount was too much: “We used to pay Sh1,000, which is affordable for the common mwananchi like me, but what is the difference with the private hospitals? We don’t see any improvement in services, just the pricing.”

But an official at Mwananyamala defended the new fees, saying they were within the official cost-sharing policy. Mr Edwin Bisakala, the Health Secretary, said the earlier payment of Sh1,000 was only for registration while the current amount covers a medical card, consultations and initials lab tests. “Formerly, the patients were either bringing an exercise book that we used to keep their medical records but the new A4 card remains in the patient’s file at the hospital and the patient is given a card number for reference. On top of that, the patient will get consultation and some initial tests.”

He added: “We are just implementing the national cost-sharing policy that says we should raise the fees by 50 per cent if the cost of operation has risen.  Secondly, it is now a regional referral hospital requiring that the people make use of the health centres in their wards.”

The new charge is expected to help raise internal hospital revenue so that even when the national medical subsidy is delayed or insufficient, they can still maintain required operational levels without disrupting services. “The hospital therapeutic committee proposed the new price and sent the proposal to the hospital board which is the representative of the citizens, who approved it,” he said.

The new charge at Mwananyamala hospital and impending ones at Temeke and Amana means that ward public dispensaries will now receive more patients. But inquiries at the health centres and dispensaries indicate that the current situation in terms of medical supplies and staffing will likely remain the same.

A tour of several of these health centres and dispensaries established that little has changed and staff have not been made aware of their new role. Sources at Makuburi dispensary, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they were taken by surprise at the sudden surge in patients. The source added: “We were taken aback at first as Mwananyamala did not involve or inform us of the consequences of their move. We now attend to about 200 patients, up from an average of 100 every day.”  An officer at Sinza health centre said they did not know if help would come, and in what form, if they were to handle the new challenges. “We were not informed of the changes but the patients have increased. We have not been given additional funding or more staff and medicine. “

At Makuburi, the facility has only two doctors while the third is on leave. “The government or the administration of Mwananyamala hospital should have first considered the situation in these centres because now we will have a big burden using the same inadequate resources,” said one worker.  Ministry of health officials were unavailable for comment.

How Dar can curb corruption

Tanzania has to pull up its socks and back words with commitment if the country wants to triumph against corruption, says Transparency International (TI).

The organisation recently ranked Tanzania at 111 out of 177 countries on its 2013 Corruption Perceptions Index, nine places down from the 2013 index.

Since the publication of the 1996 Warioba report assessing the state of corruption in Tanzania, the country has established a comprehensive body of regulations, laws and oversight institutions aimed at preventing, investigating and sanctioning corrupt practices, including the Prevention of Corruption Bureau (PCB) to Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB), and the Ethics Inspectorate Department. 

However, anti-corruption institutions suffering from lack of staff, resources and coordination, enforcement of the laws and regulations remaining limited, which some view as the reasons behind the stalling of the fight against corruption.

“Despite 2013 being a year in which governments around the world passed new laws and forged fresh commitments to end corruption, people are not seeing the results of these promises”, said Transparency International.

According to the organisation, anti-corruption is an increasingly attractive platform for politicians, with many incorporating anti-corruption pledges into their election campaigns. The danger, however, is that these anti-corruption promises fail to materialise.

 “Government guarantees of greater accountability do not always bring about tangible results at the local level. Protests in Brazil this summer showed public exasperation at the continuation of political scandals in spite of governmental assurances of a zero-tolerance policy on corruption,” claimed the organisation .

Borrow a leaf

Tanzania and the Sub-Saharan region as a whole once again shows the highest perceived levels of public sector corruption, averaging a score of 33.

According to TI, there are however success stories which showed action in executing anti-corruption strategies. Estonia established a new anti-corruption strategy centring on increasing transparency in state institutions by creation of online database accessible to all, where people can find who in their municipal council won a tender and what can be done with taxpayer money.  The effort, among others, saw the country climbing four places in the index, from 32 in 2012 to 28 this year.

According to the latest corruption studies in the country, 18 per cent of Estonians said they had been offered bribes and four per cent had given bribes. The strategy is not dealing with crimes directly, but rather focusing on prevention and education.

In Spain, after a period blighted by political scandals indicating a lack of accountability and fading public trust, the country has dropped ten places in the index from 30 last year to 40 this year. Spain tried to remedy its corruption troubles with a new Transparency Law passed by a congress in September and awaits Senate’s approval .

DC announces city’s cleaning schedule

The district commissioner here, Halima Dendego, has announced plans by the local government to undertake an improvement on the current public cleanliness exercise in Tanga popularly known as “Kalembo Day,” conducted every first Saturday of the month to ensure that it does not become a nuisance to businessmen.

Announcing plans at the first inaugural meeting of the Tanga District Business Council (TDBC), Dendego said that under the new plans to be effective starting next year, businesses would not be closed on ‘Kalembo Day’ as it was the case in the past.

Closure of businesses has caused quite a stir and has been a nuisance to businessmen who have complained of losing profits through the exercise. Contributing to a general discussion on the state of business in Tanga City, a member of the council, Sadik Shembilu, said people were not treating the day with mockery, with businessmen closing businesses as usual but staying inside their houses without doing any kind of cleanliness.

“It does not serve the original purpose of cleaning the city. We thank authorities for establishing the cleanliness drive but I think we should change our tactics,” said Shembilu.

He suggested the use of youth brigades to clean many areas using payments from households instead of using the current system.

The district commissioner said that the city would be divided into zones where cleaning would be done by different sectors of the society.

“The first zone would be where the city council is able to conduct cleanliness without any problem. The second zone would be left to the private sector and would include a plan to establish youth groups to do the cleanliness for a fee,” Dendego pointed out.

She said the other zone would involve areas where the public would do cleanliness collectively (msalagambo).

“Cleanliness in Tanga would be a 24-hour affair and the health department is expected to take charge of the situation to ensure that everybody takes part in the exercise.

Meanwhile, a health department official, Joseph Mbati, said that registration of youth groups to undertake cleaning tenders has already started and eight groups have already been registered.

Dar’s $500bn gas boom and Africa’s richest tribe

The discovery of natural gas reserves, apart from elevating Tanzania’s economic status, has also triggered heated debate, putting the country’s future at a crossroads. While the government has maintained that its policy aims to create what it calls ‘a win-win situation’, some observers believe Tanzanians have been locked out of the $500 billion gas bonanza.

Energy and Minerals minister Sospeter Muhongo did not take kindly to the debate initiated by Tanzania Private Sector Foundation chairman Reginald Mengi. Prof Muhongo believes Mr Mengi harbours selfish interests, and does not speak on behalf of the masses as he claims.

But even before Mr Mengi’s outcry against the exclusion of locals from the lucrative natural gas sector, Mtwara and Lindi residents had rioted against what they claim is their sidelining from the imminent boom. The government’s response was to fire tear gas and bullets at them and deploy the military to calm the situation. Countrywide, the nation is divided on how gas revenues should be distributed and spent. Amid the heated debate between Prof Muhongo and Mr Mengi, The Citizen asks in a special news analysis whether Tanzania could learn a lesson from Africa’s richest community.

Kikwete in tough cabinet choice

 In re-crafting the Cabinet,  the engine of  running government affairs,  President Jakaya Kikwete  faces a two-in-one challenge: filling  vacant posts, and determining whether the current governance systems are, or aren’t  good enough to enable even the best brains and dedicated individuals to operate efficiently.

That, some analysts, say, is apparent, in the wake of four ministers being sacked, and a looming reshuffle that could see more heads rolling, amid heightened concerns at levels ranging from the grassroots to Parliament, that the government is a let-down, in its public service mission.

On Friday,  the president,  as top appointing authority,  fired four ministers implicated by a parliamentary select committee with gross human rights abuse during an operation to tackle poaching, dubbed ‘Operation Tokomeza’. 

Chairman of the committee James Lembeli revealed shocking incidences of crimes, including murder, rape and torture committed by soldiers deployed to execute  the operation that triggered much alarm and criticism. He then proposed that the four minister-- Dr Emmanuel Nchimbi (Home Affairs), Mr Khamis Kagasheki (Tourism and Natural Resources), Mr Shamsi Vuai Nahodha (Defence and the National Service) and Dr David Mathayo (Livestock and Fisheries Development)--take responsibility by resigning.

Shedding political party affiliations often typical on issues of a relatively mild nature, MPs supported the proposal, culminating in President Kikwete endorsing the plea by blessing the sacking of the ministers.

Commentators who spoke to The Citizen on Sunday pointed out that, whereas departure from the Cabinet via resignation of,  or expulsion  by ministers deemed inefficient or irresponsible was a positive trend, it wasn’t a wholesome solutions to operational problems.

The Head must  probe  the extent to which the governance systems were a stumbling block to  the performance of  even ministers who would be exemplary performers in an ideal environment.

What’s more, they noted, restricting punitive measures to ministers was unfair and wouldn’t have long-term positive bearings if  subordinate, but nonetheless key  executives such as permanent secretaries and top political officers  implicated in the atrocities are not sent packing.

Political scientist Bashiru Ali, says the whole governance system in the government was in  such a shambles  that even potentially capable ministers wouldn’t be helpful and whose tenure could consequently be short-lived.

“The same would happen even if we bring in angels…have you asked yourself how many ministers have served in the energy and tourism ministries since Kikwete came to power?” the University of Dar es Salaam lecturer asked. The ministry  of energy has seen three ministers on the wheel since President Kikwete came to power in 2005 while that of tourism will be having its fourth head after the next reshuffle. He said President Kikwete’s administration lacked clear administrative discipline, making even new ministers vulnerable to failure.

“The system is exhausted…it is ungovernable; this parliament will be investigating one scandal after another because the system is failing…it needs a major overhaul,” said Mr Bashiru.

To show failings in the country’s governance system, the academic said the parliament itself  was suffering from similar accountability problems, making even the Lembeli’s report questionable.

He queried: “We heard of raping  and killings in Mtwara during gas-related chaos; have you seen any report on those atrocities?”

Leader of the opposition Civic United Front (CUF) Prof Ibrahim Lipumba asked President Kikwete to constantly review performance of his ministers before things get out of hand.

Chadema’s Chairman Freeman Mbowe said we would be committing  serious political mistakes to pour too much blame on alleged underperforming ministers without critically reviewing how the current governance systems work.

“Contributions in parliament by mostly CCM MPs indicate that the ruling party was losing grip,” said the Hai MP. Mr Mbowe said he expected the President  to weed out more unsuitable ministers, citing the Education sector as an example.

Why women have sharper memory than men

If you are a man, perhaps you have wondered why your wife, girlfriend, mother, sister and even a female friend remembers everything you said to her or promised. You also may have been surprised why women are better than men when it comes to memory tests.

If you are female, chances are you have also wondered why men tend to outperform women in spatial tasks and motor skills—such as map reading or driving. Wonder no more.  Scientists have found the answer.

A pioneering study has shown, for the first time, that the brains of men and women are wired differently—which could explain some of the stereotypical differences in male and female behaviour, the United Kingdom’s The Independent newspaper reported yesterday, quoting research by scientists.

According to the newspaper, researchers found that many of the connections in a typical male brain run between the front and the back of the same side of the brain, whereas in women the connections are more likely to run from side to side between the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

This difference in the way the nerve connections in the brain are “hardwired” occurs during adolescence when many of the secondary sexual characteristics such as facial hair in men and breasts in women develop under the influence of sex hormones, the study found.

The researchers believe the physical differences between the two sexes in the way the brain is hardwired could play an important role in understanding why men are in general better at spatial tasks involving muscle control while women are better at verbal tasks involving memory and intuition.

Psychological testing has consistently indicated a significant difference between the sexes in the ability to perform various mental tasks, with men outperforming women in some tests and women outperforming men in others. Now there seems to be a physical explanation, according to scientists.

The UK newspaper said, quoting Ragini Verma, a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia: “These maps show us a stark difference—and complementarity—in  the architecture of the human brain that helps provide a potential neural basis as to why men excel at certain tasks and women at others.

“What we’ve identified is that, when looked at in groups, there are connections in the brain that are hardwired differently in men and women. Functional tests have already shown than when they carry out certain tasks, men and women engage different parts of the brain.”

The research was carried out on 949 individuals—521 females and 428 males—aged between eight and 22. The brain differences between the sexes became apparent only after adolescence, the study found.

A special brain-scanning technique called diffusion tensor imaging, which can measure the flow of water along a nerve pathway, established the level of connectivity between nearly 100 regions of the brain, creating a neural map of the brain called the “connectome”, Prof Verma said.

“It tells you whether one region of the brain is physically connected to another part of the brain and you can get significant differences between two populations,” Prof Verma said. “In women, most of the connections go between left and right across the two hemispheres while in men most of the connections go between the front and the back of the brain.”

Because the female connections link the left hemisphere, which is associated with logical thinking, with the right, which is linked with intuition, this could help to explain why women tend to do better than men at intuitive tasks.

Prof Verma added: “Intuition is thinking without thinking. It’s what people call gut feelings. Women tend to be better than men at these kinds of skill which are linked with being good mothers.”

Many previous psychological studies have revealed significant differences between the sexes in the ability to perform various cognitive tests.

Men tend to outperform women in tasks involving spatial tasks and motor skills—such as map reading—while women tend to do better in memory tests, such as remembering words and faces, and social cognition tests, which try to measure empathy and “emotional intelligence”.

HomeNewsEast Africa News EAST AFRICA NEWS S.Sudan bid to join EAC in jeopardy

The ongoing civil unrest in South Sudan may shatter the country’s dream of joining the East African Community (EAC),The Citizen has learnt.

Right from the outset, the newly independent South Sudan cultivated warm relations with its southern neighbours within the EAC.

Motivated by economic pragmatism, and perhaps seeking a sense of belonging, South Sudan, Africa’s youngest nation, submitted an application to join the regional economic bloc in November 2012, just months after gaining independence.

The five partner states – Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi – were more than eager to bring the oil-rich country into the fold of the EAC. A verification team was sent to Juba in July 2012 and a timetable for negotiations has since been drawn up.

However, the ongoing political chaos in South Sudan may see these plans crumble swiftly. The Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC sets out stability and good governance as one of the requirements for membership. An attempted coup and political chaos mean that South Sudan is now far from meeting this prerequisite.

“The current internal crisis in South Sudan does not augur well with its bid for membership in the Community,” noted EAC Secretary-General Richard Sezibera in a statement.

The EAC Charter, Dr Sezibera observes, requires that a country meet standards on “universally accepted principles of good governance, democracy, the rule of law, observance of human rights and social justice.”

Clashes broke out in Juba on December 15, following what the presidency claims was an attempted coup. They have since escalated, with reports indicating that violence has spread to other cities. The United Nations has put the death toll so far at about 500 people.

Following a meeting of the EAC Council of Ministers in November, the secretariat had scheduled the first round of negotiations with South Sudan for January 13 to January 22, 2014.

A decision on South Sudan’s membership in the Community was expected from the heads of state in April 2014.

With Juba in a shambles, it is doubtful whether President Salva Kiir’s government will make this date with the EAC, let alone meet the standards required set out by partner states.

“We pray that this programme will not be jeopardised by the ongoing internal conflict in the country,” reads part of Dr Sezibera’s statement.

Prof Macharia Munene, an international relations scholar at the United States International University, noted in a telephone interview that the current crisis in Juba should not have come as a surprise to the EAC partner states since South Sudan has struggled for stability since independence.

President Salva Kiir has blamed soldiers loyal to former Vice-President Riek Machar, whom he sacked with the rest of the Cabinet in July.

Prof Munene reckons that the speed with which the conflict is resolved could be key in determining whether the timeline for South Sudan’s integration into the EAC will be interrupted.

“The question now is how the government will handle the situation. If it is resolved quickly and is seen as no more than a hiccup, then the schedule might not be dramatically interrupted. If it is a prolonged crisis, then there might be problem,” he said.

Even in the early stages of verification of South Sudan’s EAC membership application, there were cracks. A team sent to Juba last year noted that the government was divided over what the timetable would be for joining the EAC.

The verification committee also raised concerns about the “highly militarised society.”

“Proliferation of illicit arms and light weapons is a threat to national and regional security and stability,” read the team’s report.

Was it an attempted coup d’état? That is neither fully established nor highly important, pretty much like the question as to whether this is a Nuer-Dinka clash.

There has been incessant violence in different parts of South Sudan, but not to the military, humanitarian and political scales of the clashes between factions of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) last Sunday and the civilian killings that followed.

The arrest of ten or more senior figures of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) and the search for others is also unprecedented.

The violence has extended from Juba to Jonglei State and could spread further.

It has retained the form of clashes within the military with civilian casualties. Similarly, government clamp down on suspected dissidents has also gone beyond the capital city.

There are reports that local SPLM officials in Warrap State have been arrested for questioning over their roles in the alleged coup attempt. These developments are unfortunate but not surprising.

Signs of growing disunity in SPLM and the possibility of a potentially violent conflict between two rival groups under President Kiir and Dr Machar Teny have only been getting clearer by the day.

Historical antecedents to the current crisis, especially the more recent ‘catalysts’ are fairly well known.

The dismissal of Dr Machar as vice-president, coupled with the sacking of several ministers following dissolution of the Cabinet and the suspension of SPLM secretary-general Pagan Amum in July this year, gave the strongest indication that SPLM was at war with itself.

Before then, the president had issued decrees sacking the governors of Lake and Unity states at different times this year and appointing office holders in interim capacities.

TZ woman changing lives abroad

She has come a long way. Her experience around gender sent her on a journalistic and diplomatic journey to South Africa where she settled until today. A life coach and author, Ms Scholastic Kimaryo, told her story to The Citizen on Sunday in Pretoria recently

Tell me about yourself

I was born in Kibosho, Moshi Rural, in 1949 in a family of three girls and three boys. In my community, I was the first girl to go beyond primary school.

My father did not want to waste his money from coffee by sending a girl child to school, it was only after the local parish priest intervened that I was allowed to continue with standard five.

I was lucky in secondary school in that the government shouldered the burden. Fortunately, I was very good in class and excelled at a missionary school.

I later joined Tabora Girls High School which was under Barbro Johansson. Madam Johansson helped us so much, she wanted the girl child to do well, and we did not disappoint. 

Afterwards, I joined the then University of East Africa in Nairobi in 1969, where I did a degree in home economics. During my studies, I wrote articles for various publications and it was not surprising that I would soon land atUhuru, Mzalendo and Nationalist newspapers. I was later told to go and work for Daily News and Sunday News where I also ran a column on home economics issues. As a journalist, I rose to become secretary general of the Tanzania Journalists Association (Taja). In October 1977, the United Nations General Assembly declared that 1979 would be an international year of the child.  

The aim was to remind and ask all governments to put structures that would improve the wellbeing of every child. Working for newspapers and also under the public service, I was sent to write about the year and, among other things, I interviewed the Unicef head, Mr Alex Tosh. That changed everything and the rest, as they say, is history.

So, that set off your next phase as a UN worker. How was the experience?

In 1977, I was appointed the first executive secretary of the Tanzanian Commission for children funded by Unicef. 

Although I had written many articles prior to that appointment, this was the first organisation where my writing would make a difference. We proposed and implemented a number of child-related projects, found foreign donors; we translated a book-‘Mahali Pasipo na Daktari’-which was distributed all over the country. We were so successful that Mwalimu Nyerere declared that 1980 would be the national year of the child. I stayed on and progressed to be head of Unicef in the country and thereafter I was seconded to UN where I worked for various UN agencies, mainly in Southern Africa. After 23 years, I was promoted to be the UNDP Representative to SA, effectively responsible for the UN agencies in the country. I had wanted to join politics in the 1980’s but then UN policies did not allow us to participate.

So, I worked for Unicef for 23 years and UNDP for eight years in Botswana, Lesotho, South Africa, where I was the first Unicef representative after the country attained its independence, Liberia during Charles Taylor’s reign, Kenya and New York.

But after all those years of service delivery, I realised that somehow there was a disconnection. All what we were doing was not sustainable because of policy issues. That is how I found my way back to school to study social policy, planning and participation in developing countries at the London School of Economics & Political Science. When I returned, I decided to work with UNDP for its core mandate is governance.

What were the highlights of your career?

There are several in every country that I worked. In Tanzania, Unicef helped to significantly reduce child mortality so much so that it was common to find children named ‘Unicef’. In Botswana, we highlighted the plight of the pastoral communities. In SA, our work focused on supporting the emerging democracy in incorporating the rights of children into the new Constitution. Also during my time as the Unicef representative here, our office managed to bring the Duchess of Kent for a tour which resulted in her raising five million dollars for the local cause. Similarly, in Liberia which happened to have been during its civil war, we facilitated a tour by ‘the Oprah of Japan’ Tetsuko Kuroyanagi who raised a million dollars to help our programmes.

What was the secret behind your success?

First of all, up-bringing is very important. Parents should nurture their children to work hard, to be independent while also ensure they grow with good manners. But secondly, we should know that hard work pays… I worked hard that is why I succeeded.

I also knew that I was educated using tax payers’ money so, I had to work hard for my country as a way of saying thank you. Thirdly, discipline; we have to be disciplined at home, at school, everywhere. If you are disciplined you will do well at work as well.

And what were the challenges that you faced?

I must admit that UN is a very difficult place to work. It is a club of different governments. What is accepted at the UN is moral minimum but the problem was with implementation; you work under a certain host government. Everywhere you go has its working environment and does and don’ts. You have to make sure that you convince the host government to help you reach the people you are supposed to serve. Because the target is the people, governments can sometimes send you to serve the areas which are not necessarily the UN’s priority.  Another challenge is that of family.

I was always traveling and I could be moved from one country to the other. I had problems keeping tabs on my children. At the end we decided to send them to boarding schools. Yes, I got a very good income but it was sometimes painful living away from my family. 

How did you finally end up staying in South Africa?

I retired from the UN after I reached the mandatory age of 60 years, but I was still energetic. So, I took my pension and went back to school, this time at the Chopra Centre University in California where I got an International Certification as an Ayurvedic Lifestyle Coach and Primordial Sound Meditation Instructor.

South Africa is the only country where I served for two different periods. I really believe that God brought me here for a reason.

After independence, Mwalimu Nyerere said that the continent would not be free unless the other countries including SA were freed. Similarly, I think that in the success or failure of SA lies the hopes and aspirations of the African people. Here, I find vibrancy, a democratic space and a hunger for success. It is the last hope that we have to get our act together and provide a platform for a dynamic Africa.

I currently serve on the boards of many international organisations and about a decade ago I founded the Tanzanian Women in Gauteng (Twiga), which is essentially aimed at bringing together Tanzanian women living here. We support each other on different fronts

After witnessing the toll that stress in the workplace takes on individuals, I made a promise to God that when I retire I would learn to be a principle-centred leader who promotes balanced living for people to be healthy in mind, body and spirit.

I retired in 2009 and went to the Chopra Centre University in California to learn about spiritual health. I subsequently founded the Maadili Conscious Leadership & Healthy Lifestyles Coaching Institute. Using Ayurvedic techniques, I help individuals in the work place and elsewhere identify their natural mind body constitution and to understand their behaviour patterns when they are in and out of balance. On this basis, I share with them knowledge that enables them to access their potential towards the attainment of mind body balance through mindful awareness and conscious choice making. This helps tap into the healer within all of us and supports the fulfilment of our purpose in life.

For me, it is important to unlock the potential that is in most African people, individually and collectively.

What do you see as Tanzania’s development challenges?

Well, first, we have to work on our education system. I think the current curricula don’t prepare our people to get out of school and be competitive.

In the past we were taught to work hard, not only for ourselves but the country at large, may be because of the policy of socialism, but I now see everyone rushing to enrich themselves by any means. Selfishness won’t make us develop as a nation.

During our days you could hardly hear of corruption scandals, today it is normal. Moreover, our leaders need to be selfless and patriotic.

They need to put plans that will see the nation benefit from its natural resources. Our country has almost every natural resource but we are still poor. We have to put in place plans so that we prosper using our God-given heritage.

Tanesco debts pose risk to Tanzania’s economy: World Bank

The state power utility firm, Tanzania Electric Company (Tanesco), which has accumulated huge debts is mounting risks to the government, in terms of managing the rising national debt stock and subsequent debt payments’ demand.

Reading the fourth Economic Update prepared by the World Bank, lead Economist of Burundi, Tanzania and Uganda, Mr Jacques Morisset, said that  Tanesco has already accumulated $260 million (Sh416 billion) that has to be shouldered by the government.

Mr Morisset said, the government has to rethink incurring more debts because it has big commitment to pay debts incurred by Tanesco apart from the debts arising from financing infrastructure development.

He also said the government will have to decide between either increasing the power tariff or budget reallocation involving expenditure cuts in other economic sectors.

“Decisive actions will be needed to close Tanesco’s projected financial gap, which will grow in approximately $250 million in 2013. The required actions will involve politically contentious measures such as tariffs increase or budget reallocations involving significant expenditure cuts in other areas,” reads part of the report circulated in the World Bank’s meeting held in Dar es Salaam recently. 

According to the World Bank’s lead economist, alternatively these actions may involve non-concessional borrowing at high future cost, which needs government rethinking.  “The size of Tanesco deficit is itself sensitive to a number of factors outside government control, including hydrology conditions and world oil prices. A combination of bad luck or delay in the implementation of Tanesco action plan would add significant risk to the government’s fiscal accounts,” World Bank report further reads.

Apart from Tanesco’s huge debt, the World Bank report has shown other risks associated with rising debt services’ payments as short term risk relating to implementation of projects under Big Results Now (BRN) and shortfalls in revenue collection.

The World Bank has also enlisted the third risk as accumulation of government payment arrears relating to the pension sector and the management of contingent liabilities from the parastatals.

The manager for World Bank projects in Africa, Mr Albert Zeufact also cautioned that the tendency of most African countries in continuing to meet the cost of running inefficient parastatals  leads to unnecessary debts.

 “What is important is to make sure that when government borrows for huge public investment it targets the most productive ventures that can give positive returns,” said Mr Zeufack.

Deployed Ugandan troops evacuate over 100 from Juba

The UPDF on Friday evacuated 105 people from Juba, 88 of who are Ugandans.

Two Ugandans were critically injured and were rescued by Chief of Defence Forces Katumba Wamala who visited Juba in a fixed-wing aircraft, while 103 were evacuated by a Uganda Air Cargo aircraft under the ministry of Defence.

Capt Anthony Tabaro Kiconco, the acting UPDF Air force spokesperson, said: “Fifteen of the rescued people were Chinese and 88 Ugandans, 16 of whom are children; 95 per cent of the evacuated people are women…”

He said they brought the Chinese along since they were near their embassy so “there is no way we would leave them behind”. He said the evacuated Ugandans would be taken to Central Police Station in Kampala from where they will find their way back home as the army continues the evacuation exercise.

Ms Jane Namalwa, who works at the customs unit in Juba, said men in uniform stormed their home at night and called out names of people and killed them instantly. She said she was saved because she had a baby. Ms Namalwa said they have Ugandan leadership in South Sudan who helped in mobilizing them and the embassy which kept contacting Ugandans they knew.

“We have left over 10,000 Ugandans stranded at the embassy and some were not registered and have no documents which is making it hard for them to be evacuated,” she said.

Uganda sent soldiers to South Sudan following the week-long fighting between the government army and mutineers loyal to sacked vice president Riek Machar.

Military sources said the government sent soldiers from the elite presidential guard with fighter planes. The sources said the Ugandan soldiers first secured Juba Airport before starting the evacuations. “Uganda has deployed troops in Juba to facilitate the evacuation mission of stranded Ugandans and Kenyans, most of who are injured,” UPDF spokesperson Paddy Ankunda said. He said the deployment of UPDF soldiers at Juba Airport was authorised by the South Sudan government.

However, he denied that the soldiers had been deployed to stop advancing mutinying forces loyal to Machar.