Trip to Dar es Salaam reveals measures put in place by Magufuli

Tanzania's President John Pombe Magufuli.

Tanzania's newly appointed 30-member Cabinet will not hold 'homecoming parties' as their Kenyan counterparts usually do.

A headline in one of the local dailies, Mwananchi, captured well the moment with a headline, "Kiapo cha Jasho". No pomp and colour was witnessed at State House in Dar es Salaam when the Cabinet took oath of office.

A visit to Dar es Salaam reveals steady traffic flow, orderly work by the traffic police, and road construction among other economic activities.

Civil servants are now 'permanently in their offices' working, albeit, contributing to the reduction of traffic jam in Dar es Salaam.

Since being elected as Tanzania's 5th President on October 25, Magufuli has hit the road running. Woe to you who fails to join the flow, you are likely to be swept aside as "What will Magufuli Do' twitter hash tag continues to mesmerise critics and foes of Tanzania around the globe.

Magufuli is being criticised and praised in equal measure not only in Tanzania but also in the East Africa region and beyond. The President has received praise from Australia, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda and many other countries for his efforts to streamline government operations and improve delivery of services.

But some opposition leaders are waiting to see whether the enthusiasm will wear down. He has employed a leadership style, "Management by Walking Around" (Mbwa)-walk and see for yourself what is happening.

While it may not be sustained for long but its use has re-ignited hope and energised the war on corruption, streamlining the public service and delivery of services in a country that is sitting on mineral wealth that can transform it from a least developed to a developed country.

"I would have wished our leaders to take a walk around their offices, places of work, to see for themselves what is happening without being told," Kenya's Commission for Revenue Allocation Chairman Micah Cheserem said.

Last week, Magufuli sacked four officials for failing to heed his ban of foreign travel. They are Mary Mosha, Ekwabi Muchungu, Doreen Kapwani and Rukia Nikitas.

Lost revenue

He sacked the head of the Tanzania's Anti-Corruption body, Taasisi ya Kuzuia na Kupambana na Rushwa (TAKUKURU), Edward Hoseah for what he said is the unsatisfactory manner he was leading the war against corruption.

"One of the biggest areas the Government has lost revenue is the Tanzania Port Authority and Tanzania Revenue Authority. I am disappointed with continued corruption activities at the two institutions under your watch," Magufuli said in a statement on Wednesday. In Dr Hoseah's place, he appointed Valentino Mlowola, who was the latter's deputy.

But before then, he had cancelled Independence Day celebrations, banned all but essential foreign travel, and restricted first and business class travel for all officials except the president, vice president and prime minister. He also directed the Tanzanian Revenue Authority to cut down on tax exemptions in a move to boost revenue collection.

Public servants are now on their toes. The head of the major referral Hospital of Muhimbili, equivalent of our own Kenyatta National Hospital, was fired and the hospital's governing council dissolved when Magufuli visited the facility and found patients sleeping on the floor and diagnostic machines broken.

Magufuli's austere approach resonates with a generation that is jaded with endless corruption scandals and Government excesses.

"The President has come up with a slogan, 'Hapa Kazi Tu' (It's only work here) and he is prepared to live up to his slogan," said Gershom Msigwa, Acting Communication Director, Office of the President, State House Dar es Salaam. Gershom added: "To get a better view of what he has done, please visit the Muhimbili hospital, the Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road in Dar es Salaam, the newly constructed bus terminus across the city Tanzania Revenue Authority, Office of the Parliament among others."

The Standard first visited the Muhimbili National Hospital where the new managing director was busy visiting the X-ray and the CT Scan machines facilities within the hospital.

"As you can see we are busy working. I am visiting the offices to find out how the operations as ordered by the President are going on," said the hospital's Acting Director Lawrence Mseru. Magufuli disbanded the Muhimbili Board and fired the Acting hospital Director Hussein Kidanto when he visited the hospital more than a month ago.

Prof Mseru's predecessor is at the Ministry of health headquarters awaiting re-deployment.

Critical equipment

At the Hospital, the Head of Communication Aminiel Aligeisha and his team said the President visited on November 9 without notice.

"When the President made an impromptu visit to this hospital, he was upset to discover that very critical equipment at the hospital such as MRI and CT scans were out of order," Mr Aligeisha said.

The equipment had been out of service for two months and instead of getting it repaired, the hospital referred patients to private hospitals.

"As you can see, all the equipment is now working. We are planning to buy better and modern CT Scan and X-ray machines in the next coming days," he said.