ABOUT 9.5bn/- is needed to restore Dar es Salaam road and bridge infrastructure damaged by the recent rains in the country’s commercial capital, Prime Minister, Mr Mizengo Pinda, announced on Saturday.
Winding up his office budget estimates for 2015/2016 financial year, Mr Pinda pointed out that according to preliminary valuation conducted by regional authority, about 79 road networks in the city were damaged.
“We had earlier tasked the Regional Commissioner’s Office to conduct assessment on the extent of damage caused by the rains. The office submitted the report and the government is working on it,” he said.Winding up his office budget estimates for 2015/2016 financial year, Mr Pinda pointed out that according to preliminary valuation conducted by regional authority, about 79 road networks in the city were damaged.
He noted that the government had already communicated with Treasury to instantly release at least 3bn/- to be directed to those areas which were seriously damaged and needed swift response.
The premier told the National Assembly that the government had also communicated with Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF) to see how military officers can step in and help restore wrecked infrastructure.
He informed the House that the government was also mulling ways to come up with comprehensive master plan for the city, in a move aimed at keeping infrastructure intact all the time.
He also took the issue with Dar es Salaam residents for failing to obey government directives, saying some of the effects resulting from the rains could have been avoided.
“Time and again the government has issued warning to valley dwellers to vacate but they tend not to heed to such advice. Let us respect the advice and orders issued by relevant authorities,” he said.
Earlier, the leader of the opposition, Mr Freeman Mbowe, had complained that Dar es Salaam’s infrastructure systems were easily damaged due to government’s failure to come up with a master plan for the city.
He said that since independence, the government has only come up with a master plan for the city twice only, in 1968 and 1979 under the first president, the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere.
He noted the first master plan was prepared when the city’s population was 250,000 and the second was conducted when the population had reached 750,000. “Now the population in the city has sharply risen to 4.5 million.
For over 30 years, we have not had a master plan, it is time we treated Dar es Salaam’s issue with utmost urgency and consider it as a disaster,” he noted.
The prime minister also criticised the opposition’s stance that current administration has not done anything in the ten years that President Jakaya Kikwete has been in office.
“It is saddening to see a person claiming that we have done nothing, I know you are on the opposition but at least you should appreciate some of the good things that have been achieved, where there are shortcomings then criticise constructively,” he told the House.
The premier based his defence on a number of researches conducted by international agencies that have concluded that the government has been on record as one of the countries in the region with notable economic growth.
He, for instance, said that in 2012, the World Bank in partnership with Business Insiders made a survey on the world fastest growing economy whereby Tanzania was ranked 15th in the world.
Mr Pinda said that Tanzania also featured in the top ten list of fast growing economies in Africa. “International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its world regional economic outlook revealed that the country does a lot,” he noted, calling upon Members of the Parliament (MPs) to hold government responsible while recognising that Tanzanian economic growth was on sound footing.
Mr Pinda also responded to MPs’ assertions that the country’s budget was unrealistic, saying that for the past four years Development Partners (DPs) have failed to remit their pledges as agreed.
“We have been experiencing a shortfall of about 30 per cent almost every year, had been that these partners were issuing budget support as pledged, then it would have been easier to meet the target of the budget,” he explained. The House on Saturday approved the PM’s Office budget estimates for 2015/2016.
The premier had requested approval of 4.7trillion/- for councils, 405bn/- for Regional Administration and Local Government (TAMISEMI) and its departments and another 177.3bn/- for the Parliament.
Source: Daily News
