TANZANIA: GHOST WORKER SCAM LANDS AT PREVENTION AND COMBATING OF CORRUPTION BUREAU

Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs Mwigulu Nchemba

NAMES of public servants accused of swindling the government of some 40bn/- each month by pocketing salaries of non-existent workers in addition to colluding with suppliers to inflate claims have been submitted to the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB).

Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs Mwigulu Nchemba has exclusively informed the 'Daily News' that a long list had been submitted to the anti-corruption squad, closing the chapter of "business as usual".

"I have submitted to the PCCB and the police names of all suspects behind the sickening ghost workers rip-off. The chapter is closed for misappropriation of public funds with impunity.

The amount stolen could have saved many lives by purchasing essential medical supplies," the deputy minister observed. Last week, Mr Nchemba announced that over 40bn/- was paid to 14,000 fictitious workers, equivalent to 480bn/- annually.

He said the list is a long one while those implicated include officials in the payment sections, who allegedly collected salaries for non-existing workers in addition to colluding with dishonest suppliers to inflate claims.

"Meticulous verification revealed that out of 19bn/- allegedly outstanding teachers claims, only 5bn/- was genuine while the remaining 14bn/- found its way into individual pockets," the deputy minister quipped.

He pointed out that civil servants who are entrusted to serve in public offices should take the responsibility with dignity and humility.

"Those who think they could continue abusing office for personal gains will not be tolerated," Mr Nchemba vowed. He said appropriate disciplinary measures will be taken against all actors in the malpracticeAsked why it has taken so long to address the problem, which has met with widespread public resentment for many years, Mr Nchemba said the fraudulent acts persisted because of the late detection due to the fact that the corrupt had been tampering with or hiding the files.

"There are names of former public servants who have died, retired officers and those terminated or shifted to the private sector. Billions of shillings were siphoned off through manipulation of files for personal gain.

This is unacceptable and a lasting solution has to be found," he stressed. However, the deputy minister was categorical over the resolve by the government in support of the PCCB engagement.

"None of the swindlers will be spared. We (Finance ministry) have effectively communicated with the Civil Service Management Office (Utumishi) to take disciplinary measures against dishonest workers," he said. It was explained that zeros were added to figures with the intention to cheat on the genuine record of accounts.

For example, in some cases, 50m/- figure was twisted to read 500m/-. Measures taken by the Treasury to end persistent cheating in salary payment include introduction of a computerised salary payment system known as e-salary payroll. The system is designed to verify bank accounts of recipients to eliminate ghost workers' syndrome.

Interviewed personalities include Professor Solomon Metili from the Open University of Tanzania who commended the government for the bold decision taken to curtail the seemingly rampant misappropriation of taxpayers' money.

"This is outrageous. The amount stolen every month -- 40bn/- -- exceeded the annual development budget of the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training.

No wonder we see some of our neighbours flashing money like lottery winners at the expense of the toiling masses. Let the government keep it up," Prof Metili suggested. A lecturer from the College of Business Education (CBE) in Dar es Salaam, Mr Salum Abdulkarim, advised Tanzanians to abandon the culture of looking at corrupt elements as heroes.

Daily News