Abia politics gets messier as…T.A. Orji moves to revoke Kalu’s ABSU degree

Abia State governor, Chief Theodore A. Orji may have taken the fight against his predecessor and benefactor, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu to a more desperate level as Daily Sun reliably gathered that he is making subterranean moves to revoke the degree awarded the former governor by the Abia State University (ABSU) in 2002.
Gov. Orji who is invoking his powers as Visitor to the university is said to be behind a move compelling the varsity authorities to consider the recommendations of a kangaroo investigative panel that allegedly looked into a spurious petition lodged against the award of the degree to Kalu by the university several years ago. Kalu who had abandoned his degree programmme at the University of Maiduguri had his transcript records and other details transferred to ABSU while he was serving as governor and eventually completed the programme some eleven years ago.
In fact, photos of the then Governor Kalu sitting among other students to write his semester exams made interesting news for several newspaper houses then, as they lavishly splashed them in their publications. Eleven years down the line, however, Gov. T. A. Orji is said to be desperate to withdraw the degree to score a political point against Kalu whose return to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has sent cold shivers down the spine of the governor and his allies.
Daily Sun gathered that the Senate of the University met last Tuesday to consider the report of the investigative panel hurriedly set up to look into the curious petition filed by a yet to be unmasked petitioner. The panel alleged, in an excerpt of its report obtained by Daily Sun, that although there indeed “was a student by name Kalu, O.U. with Matriculation Number 00/42226, who supposedly transferred to Abia State University,” the process of the transfer and the documentation was incomplete and that “In effect, the said transfer of Kalu, Orji U. into Abia State University was irregular ab initio.”
The Senate was, however, said to have dismissed the report and recommendations of the panel, saying it was hurriedly put together and did not follow due process. Apart from the fact that the report was hurriedly done, the Senate also noted that the Vice Chancellor as at the time of the report, was never invited to give evidence during the so-called investigation. Similarly, the Senate noted, neither Kalu who is a central figure to the petition nor any other key figure to the matter was invited to testify.
Not satisfied, however, those believed to be bent on scoring cheap political point with the matter are said to have mounted pressure on most members of the Senate to re-visit the matter. Consequently, an emergency meeting at the university Senate has been convened tomorrow with Kalu’s degree as the only item on the agenda. A member of the Senate who spoke to Daily Sun last night on the condition of anonymity said the development is dangerous. “They should not bring politics into academics because it will destroy the institution,” he said.
Confirming that some members of the university Senate have been under pressure since Tuesday, the source said: “Yes, offers have been made to some members after majority of us rejected the bid on Tuesday. With the way things are now, I doubt whether we will have quorum on Friday.” Reacting to the move yesterday, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu who is abroad said that the Abia State government’s latest move has shown the level of desperation of the government. Kalu who spoke through his aide, Kunle Oyewunmi, said that “it is obvious that this shameless desperation was provoked by my return to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
If the governor is popular as he claims, why is he jittery and desperate that one man is re-joining a party he co-founded.” Kalu called on well-meaning Abians and Nigerians to call Gov. T.A. Orji to order, adding that Abians are yearning for dividends of democracy and the governor has the responsibility to provide them. Sounding philosophical, Kalu said that he is confident that this “move will also come to pass because no human being except God has the power to determine any other person’s destiny.”

Govs can’t dictate to us –Bamanga Tukur

Still basking in the euphoria of a successful coup against some governors perceived as enemies of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and President Goodluck Jonathan, PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur has said that governors on the platform of the party would not pick presidential candidate for the party in 2015.
Akwa Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio was picked to lead a new platform, the PDP Governors’ Forum last weekend at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, even as the party’s national leadership has said that the PDP Governors’ Forum was not meant to undermine the larger body, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), Those opposed to the purported ambition of President Goodluck Jonathan were not bemused that Akpabio’s nomination to lead the new platform was taken at the Presidential Villa.
Niger State Governor and Chairman of Northern States Governors’ Forum, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, had openly declared his interest in the presidential race, alleging that President Jonathan signed a pact with PDP governors in 2010 before he was supported for the party’s presidential ticket. There had been unconfirmed reports that Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido was also eyeing the 2015 presidential ticket that would see the embattled NGF Chairman and Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi as his running mate.
Tukur however, told newsmen in Abuja yesterday that PDP governors would not choose for the party, as he noted that the party had its own process of picking its candidate. He noted that there was nothing to worry about if some of the governors decide to back Jonathan for the ticket as it was being speculated. “Let me tell you, that is in order in politics. Jonathan is the President under our party and what is wrong if he decides to run? The others have the same opportunity to promote their candidate, if they have… But the Governors’ Forum isn’t the platform for electing candidate; we have our own system.’’
On Governor Aliyu’s allegation that the PDP Governors Forum was created to undermine the NGF, Tukur said that the Niger State governor was expressing individual opinion, not the position of the party. “Well, it is an opinion. It doesn’t mean that all our governors agree with him. He can say so but I have explained to you as the chairman of this party that they are all my governors, we may not share the same position on the formation of PDP Governors’ Forum. But I have explained to you our intention, as a party.
We want our governors to come together.’’ Meanwhile, the PDP leadership has commended President Jonathan and the leadership of the National Assembly for the successful signing of the 2013 budget, even as it urged all government agencies to ensure its full implementation for the benefit of Nigerians. The party said the delay in assenting to the budget was as a result of Jonathan’s and the PDP-led National Assembly;s insistence on thoroughness and to ensure that the provisions were in the best interest of the country.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, said in a statement yesterday that the party was highly impressed by the fatherly role played by the President in being meticulous with the budget. The party also commended Senate President David Mark and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal for their roles in ensuring understanding between the two arms on the budget. “The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) commends President Goodluck Jonathan and the leadership of the National Assembly for the successful signing of the 2013 budget.
“The party commends the two arms for ensuring that they played their constitutional roles of checks and balances to guarantee that the provisions of the budget were in the best interest of Nigerians. “The successful signing of the budget after proper checks were made to confirm that its provisions are in the best interest of the Nigerian people indicates that the Presidency and the National Assembly have been on the same page in ensuring the welfare of Nigerians which is the hallmark of the PDP-led administration”, the statement said.
The PDP urged the executive to ensure proper implementation of the budget even as it charged the National Assembly to strengthen its oversight capacity to guarantee effective utilization of resources. It also thanked ‘’Nigerians for their calmness and patience even in the face of inciting statements from opposition groups’’. The statement said such is an indication that Nigerians have confidence in the PDP-led administration in the country.

Tanzanian in list of top young African entrepreneurs

Dar es Salaam. The winner of the second episode of Tanzania’s Top 100 Mid-sized Companies Survey, Mr Patrick Ngowi of Helvetic Solar Contractors, is one of the brainiest young African entrepreneurs, according to Forbes magazine.
 The 28-year-old features in the latest list of the American bi-weekly business magazine that is renowned for its original articles on finance, industry, investing and marketing.
According to Forbes, Mr Ngowi is one of 30 Africans under the age of 30 who are changing the face of Africa.
He was picked by a panel of 12 judges from across Africa who took part in identifying the entrepreneurs and innovators who are making the most dramatic impact across the continent.
A statement in the magazine puts it this way: “These 30 young African entrepreneurs, disruptors and innovators featured on this list are impatient to change Africa. Together, they represent the entrepreneurial, innovative and intellectual best of their generation. They’re solving problems like healthcare and electricity shortages, proffering innovative solutions to waste management, building virtual and physical communities and creating lots of jobs.”
Mr Ngowi, the CEO of Helvetic Solar Contractors, ventured into business nine years ago after receiving a Sh2.3million loan from his mother, Emmy. He earned about $3 million (about Sh4.8billion) last year. With Sh2.3 million, Patrick ventured into vending Chinese mobile phones but, having discovered that only 14 per cent of Tanzanians have electricity, he decided that the solar energy business would be more profitable. A Swiss contact, Philippe Glauser, gave him extra funding. The firm, now six years into business, is a pioneer in the supply, installation and maintenance of solar systems throughout the Northern Circuit of Tanzania. In his first year of business, the 28-year-old had a turnover of Sh30 million, rising to Sh4.6 billion last year—making it the fastest growing medium-sized firm in the country, according to a leading consulting and auditing firm, KPMG.
Ngowi’s father Ephra and his mother are secondary school teachers. He credits the exposure he got from his family’s time living in Botswana and South Africa for setting him on the path to success.
On being recognised by Forbes, he says: “I’m honoured to be on the list of under 30 Best Entrepreneurs in Africa. This goes to show that Tanzania’s economy is growing and that its policies support small and medium business start-ups...It is my hope that this will inspire more of my fellow entrepreneurs to follow their dream and maintain peace and harmony through engaging in their work with absolute commitment.”
The Forbes list of 30 under 30 best African entrepreneurs also includes eight Kenyans, seven South Africans, seven Nigerians, two Ghanaians and one each from Uganda, Malawi, Cameroon, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Kenyans are: Lorna Rutto (28), a Green Tech Entrepreneur and founder of EcoPost; 26-year-old Evans Wadongo, the chairman of SDFA Kenya; 26-year-old Eric Muthomi, the founder of Stawi Foods & Fruits and the two founders of Serene Valley Properties Kimiti Wanjaria and Ian Kahara, who are both in their late 20s.
The other Kenyans are 26-year-old Cosmas Ochieng, the founder of Ecofuels Kenya, 20-year-old Joel Mwale, the founder of Skydrop Enterprises, and 25-year-old Mark Kaigwa, a partner in the Afrinnovator.
The brainy young entrepreneurs from South Africa include 28-year-old Jonathan Liebmann, a real estate developer and chief executive officer for Propertuity; 28-year-old Justin Stanford, the founder and chief executive officer for 4Di Group and 28-year-old Rapelang Rabana, founder of Yeigo Communications.

Stop grumbling and pay your debts, Tanesco told

Dar es Salaam. Tanesco should honour its contract with power supplier Songas and pay its debts, the government declared yesterday.
Speaking on the phone from Britain, Energy and Minerals Minister Sospeter Muhongo expressed surprise that Tanesco had failed to live up to its obligations. “I know Tanesco has a contract with Songas,” Prof Muhongo told The Citizen. “It should stick to it.”
Tanesco owes Songas Sh80 billion ($51 million) in outstanding bills covering the past six months. Songas has threatened to switch off Tanesco’s power supply if the state-owned firm does not pay up.
Prof Muhongo said the government was not involved in the transaction. “I wonder why the ministry should intervene when the contract is between the two,” he added. “You should go back to Tanesco and they should not escape from their duty…..I do not know how much the public utility owes Songas.”
Songas supplies about a quarter of the electricity Tanesco passes on to its own customers. Should it go ahead with the threat, most of the country will be plunged into darkness. According to Mr Chris Ford, managing director of Songas, the firm needs the money to maintain its facilities and it may have to shut down if it does not receive payment soon.
Tanesco Acting Managing Director Felchismi Mramba admitted that there was an outstanding debt but maintained that some of it had been cleared though he did not have precise figures. He added: “I understand that we have a contract with Songas but it is not proper to talk about the details in the media….we are bound by the contract. It’s true that we owe Songas billions and there is no way we can run away from that fact.”
Since Tanesco has a contract with Songas, Mr Mramba said, the public should not worry. He added: “Things are under control. Tanesco needs services from Songas and, as at yesterday, they were still consuming power from the firm.”
The face-off comes against a backdrop of reports that Tanesco is experiencing a severe financial crisis. There have also been unexplained power cuts lately.
Mr Ford was quoted saying Songas was trying to avoid switching off its plants because it was likely to result in significant disruptions of the power supply and the economy.
Throughout 2011 and 2012, he said, Songas patiently operated its facilities while working with the government and Tanesco to craft a solution to the problem. “Unfortunately,” he added, “the situation has continued to deteriorate and neither the government nor Tanesco can provide any clarity on when Songas can expect to receive any payments or when Tanesco’s financial crisis will be resolved.”
With such high levels of uncertainty on the prospects of receiving money from Tanesco, he explained, Songas was unable to commit to purchasing critical spare parts (many of which require many months to manufacture and deliver) and the safe and reliable operation of Songas’ facilities are now in jeopardy.
“This decision (to suspend operations) is not being taken lightly and Songas has already made the government and Tanesco aware of the situation,” Mr Ford said. Songas also delivers natural gas to another 225MW of additional generating plant (on top of its own 180MW) from the processing plants on SongoSongo Island and through its natural gas pipeline. Power generation from natural gas is less expensive than using liquid fuels.
Seventeen regions are currently served by the national grid and the demand stands at around 800 megawatts. If Songas were to take away 180mw, which is 22.5 per cent of the total generated, regions connected to the national grid would face an acute power shortage. Songas sent out a distress signal in June last year threatening to switch off its plant if Tanesco failed to settle a $30 million (about Sh48 billion) bill for services provided that year.

Venson fears for a BDP that does not want to embrace Change

 

In announcing that she will be standing for the position of BDP chairman, Pelonomi Venson, has said she will not be producing alongside herself a list of other people she wants elected to help her run the party in the event she gets elected.

She said that will be the task of the BDP faithful to decide.

While becoming a BDP chairman will bring with it new and added responsibilities, Venson is emphatic that she is at ease with retaining her executive position as Minister of Education.

She said she has made known her ambitions to the party leadership, but fell short of saying what the response she got was that leadership.

Effectively launching herself, Venson said she was very much aware of public apprehensions from some sections, especially in the wake of recent poor school examination results.

“I am fully aware of where the ministry is going. There is a roadmap. So far it is clear that turnaround will not be easy. But this is mainly because of where the ministry was. I have my ducks in a row,” she said as she enumerated the new changes and reforms she will be bringing to the Ministry of Education, ostensibly to improve delivery in the medium to long terms.

She said her decision to run for position of Chairman is the one that has not been taken easily, let alone lightly.

The decision, she said, came after serious thought and consideration.

“I have a family – I am a mother, I am a wife and a grandmother. Before I make a decision to take added responsibilities I have to make a thorough consideration. I can tell you that my home base is strong and solid,” she said in reference to support from her family to run.

The same, she said, also applied to her constituency, Serowe South, where she said she has received blessings to run for the party’s second most senior position after president.

“A few have expressed some reservations, but by and large people in my constituency think I have what it takes.”

But can she really be a minister and BDP Chairman at the same given the prevailing circumstances?
“Yes I can do both. I have done it before. At one point I held four responsibilities at one time; Member of Parliament, Minister, Deputy Secretary General and Acting BDP Executive Secretary,” she said.

She said after all there is nothing at the moment that stops her from being both a Chairman and minister since the rules have once again been changed to allow for it.

All she wanted to do, she said, was to bring her administrative capabilities and experiences acquired over many years to transform the BDP.

At one point, President Ian Khama came out strongly to say people would have to choose between cabinet and party executive positions.

Only Daniel Kwelagobe resigned from cabinet in favour of retaining his position as BDP National Chairman. The rest, including the BDP Secretary General at the time, Jacob Nkate, opted for cabinet.
That moratorium has since been lifted.

“There is an advantage in being at both party and cabinet at the same time,” said Venson this week.
Perhaps, as a sign of what she would use as her campaign rallying cry, Venson vaguely but strongly hinted at a BDP that is running out of time to reinvent itself and align itself for future changes, including a role as an opposition party.

She decried the lack of depth and modernization within the party ranks.

“BDP structures need to be more aligned. Perhaps because we have never worked as an opposition we do not even know how to respond to a war cry. But society is changing. The next generation will be more demanding. I am the only Member of Parliament who is active on Facebook. And that gets me worried,” she said.

Reference of BDP’s future role as an opposition party was first made by Daniel Kwelagobe, the current Chairman and Venson’s longtime mentor.

Kwelagobe has in the past said there is no longer any guarantee that the BDP, in power since independence, will win the 2019 General Elections.

And that, it seemed was a mantra that Venson echoed when she said BDP should learn to respond to a “war cry.”

But just what is it that Venson will be bringing? She makes explicit and countless references to administrative experiences, a theme that also comes out quite clearly in her resume.

MOITOI DECLARES HER INTEREST FOR BDP CHAIRMANSHIP

Serowe South Member of Parliament and Minister of Education and Skills Development Pelonomi Venson Moitoi today declared her interest to take over the Chairmanship of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party 2013/15.
The Minister who recently compared her tenacity to a pit bull is ahead on campaigns, using social media like Facebook to announce her intentions.
Since Wednesday morning her facebook page wall carried the following message: “I feel privileged to offer my services to you in the role of party Chairman for 2013-2015.
I believe that the party deserves to consolidate the peace and stability we have gained over the past several months.
As we enter the home stretch into the 2014 elections, I am convinced that I have thought through the task sufficiently to confirm that I am willing to serve and ready to deliver.
Moitoi has been under fire recently following the shockingly poor form three examinations results.

She however accused the opposition parties of politicizing education and vowed to turn around the problem riddled Ministry of Education for the better.

Improved performance as females post better results

The Uganda National Examinations Board reported an improved performance in last year’s Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education, with girls posting better results.

Out of 111,456 candidates who registered for the 2012 exams released yesterday, 109,974 sat for the exams compared to 102,296 who sat in 2011. According to Mr Mathew Bukenya, the Uneb executive secretary, there was a lower failure rate, which has been declining over the years.

At the two-principal pass level, which is the minimum consideration for admission to tertiary institutions, overall performance was better than 2011; 69.4 per cent passed compared to 64 per cent in 2011. Further, female candidates registered a slightly lower failure rate. However, male candidates performed better than the females at the three-principal level.

Weaknesses revealed
There was improvement in principal level passes in History, Entrepreneurship, Geography, Literature, Chemistry and Biology, while Economics, Christian Religious Education, Islamic Religious Education, Mathematics, Physics and Agriculture dropped. Although the core sciences and Mathematics are compulsory at O-Level, the transition to A-Level is still low.

Mr Bukenya said even for these, nearly 50 per cent of the candidates were unable to obtain a principal pass. For instance, 24.5 per cent of the candidates offered Mathematics, Physics (17.3), Chemistry (10.5) and only 10 per cent did Biology. “The level of performance, coupled with the low entries for these subjects will have a negative impact on the country’s manpower needs in science and technology,” Mr Bukenya said.

Although majority of UACE candidates offer Arts subjects, there was increased candidature recorded in Mathematics and Physics at 20 per cent, Chemistry and Biology at 14 and two per cent respectively.

Like in the past, Mr Bukenya said some students lacked communication skills and had not completed the syllabus, which has affected their performance. “The ability of candidates to interprete questions and pick out the key words in those questions was also affected by the problem of language,” he said.

Uneb said there was evidence of ‘spotting,’ where candidates prepared for particular questions from certain areas of the curriculum.
The results of 404 candidates were withheld to allow investigations into alleged exam malpractice.

Mr Bukenya explained that the management of Lugogo Hall, one of the affected centres, will be suspended and an interim board be put as investigations are concluded.

Mr Fagil Mandy, the Uneb chairperson, said any head teacher and invigilator found to have assisted a candidate in exam malpractice would be deregistered. “We have agreed with the ministry and we are not going to stop. A teacher caught involving in ways exposing a student to danger, like exam malpractice, we will take away their certificate,” Mr Mandy said.

Education Minister Jessica Alupo asked for a reduction on the number of assessment tests administered to students in order to create time to complete the syllabus. “There is beginning of term, mid-term, end of term and numerous mocks. After this a teacher has to find time to mark these exams. This translates to nine weeks of no teaching, thus the inability of schools to complete the syllabus,” she said.

No-frills carrier caves; will pay billions to TRA, TAA in back taxes and airport fees

At last FastJet, owner of Fly540 airline, has agreed to pay debts amounting to billions of shillings it owes the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) and Tanzania Airports Authority (TAA).
For almost a month FastJet has been passing the buck to Fly540 (T) Ltd over payment of debts totalling over Sh4 billion to TRA and TAA.
FastJet has been maintaining that Fly540 was supposed to pay the debts under a contract for taking over the airline.  The new turn of events arose yesterday when the FastJet general manager for Africa, Mr Kyle Haywood, told a press conference that they were ready to pay the debts pending proper reconciliation by TRA and TAA.
“We have met with TRA and TAA to discuss the pending bills. We will pay, but we want supporting documents of all these bills.  We are in discussion with TRA, for we have to validate what are paying,” said Mr Haywood.
According to documents availed to The Citizen, the airline owes to TRA a total of Sh2.9 billion and TAA a total of Sh570 million.
In a letter Ref. No. EC.30/158/01.B61, dated February 12, 2013, TAA said it wants the debtor, FastJet, to effect the payment of debts amounting to Sh570,668,242 and Sh152,596,000 ($95,360) within three days.
These are  outstanding debts on landing and parking charges.
In the latest move, TRA claims in a letter, whose copy was availed to the media, that the airline has not met its obligations. They include tax liabilities such like Pay As You Earn (PAYE) as per payroll analysis amounting to Sh456,317,637 and PAYE difference with accounts worth of Sh987,517,985.
Other categories of tax claims include Skills Development Levy (SDL) amounting to Sh117,872,376, SDL per differences with final accounts of Sh237,004,317, final rental tax of Sh70,877,283, stamp duty amounting to Sh15,708,037 and departure tax of Sh951,562,012.
Dated December 3, 2012, the document states that the scope of TRA audit of tax liabilities facing the airline included corporate tax remittance from 2009 to 2011, PAYE, SDL from January 2009 to November 2012 and Rental as well as Stamp Duty from 2009 to 2012.
According to TRA, the preliminary audit charges of all categories of taxes outlined above are yet to be paid by the company which was registered as an airline known as Fly540 Tanzania on May 29, 2008.
The TRA document further states that the audit was intended to induce voluntary compliance through an effective and efficient tax audit programme.
Further, it was  to utilise audit opportunities to educate, foster customer care hence build trust, confidence and improved compliance to the tax payer, FastJet. No frills carrier caves; will pay billions to TRA, TAA in back taxes and airport fees
“We have a strong future in Tanzania. We will invest more to increase the number of airlines and flights. We have to put a lot of capital in the aviation industry,” said Mr Haywood who is based in South Africa.
“Our airline is growing very fast. For the past two months we have recorded 75,000 passengers. We are also seeking Tanzanians to own shares in the airline,” he said.
He also announced that the airline had inaugurated flights to Mwanza and Kilimanjaro and would start flying to Zanzibar next month.
FastJet’s Africa Operations, previously called Lonrho Aviation (BVI) Ltd, have been licensing the Fly540 brand from Five Forty Aviation since 2008. FastJet’s Africa Operations now fly three Fly540 branded planes in Angola and two in Ghana. It flew two planes using the Fly540 brand in Tanzania until November 2012 when the new company took over the operations.

Songas to cut power off if debt-ridden Tanesco doesn’t pay the Sh80bn it owes

Tanesco’s power supply if the state-owned utility does not pay a $51 million (about Sh80 million at the current exchange rate) bill for the past six months.
The firm supplies about a quarter of the electricity Tanesco supplies to its own customers. Should it go ahead, most of the country will be plunged into darkness. “Songas needs the money to maintain its facilities and it may have to shut down if the payment is not made soon,” Managing Director Chris Ford told The Citizen yesterday.
The face-off comes against a backdrop of reports that Tanesco is experiencing a severe financial crisis. There have been unexplained power cuts lately and our sources told us that Songas officials and the Permanent Secretary for Energy and Minerals, Mr Eliakim Maswi, were locked all day in talks aimed at resolving the crisis—to no avail.
Mr Maswi could not be reached on his cellphone but Mr Ford said Songas was trying to avoid switching off its plants because it was likely to result in significant disruptions to the power system and economy.
Throughout 2011 and 2012, he said, Songas has patiently operated its facilities while working with the government and Tanesco to craft a solution to the problem. “Unfortunately,” he added, “the situation has continued to deteriorate and neither the government nor Tanesco can provide any clarity on when Songas can expect to receive any payments or when Tanesco’s financial crisis will be resolved.”
With such high levels of uncertainty on the prospects of receiving money from Tanesco, he explained, Songas was unable to commit to purchasing critical spare parts (many of which require many months to manufacture and deliver) and the safe and reliable operation of Songas’ facilities are now in jeopardy.
“This decision (to suspend operations) is not being taken lightly and Songas has already made the government and Tanesco aware of the situation,” Mr Ford said.
Songas also delivers natural gas to another 225MW of additional generating plant (on top of its own 180MW) from the processing plants on Songo Songo Island and through its natural gas pipeline. Generation from natural gas is inexpensive, compared to liquid fuels.
Tanesco spokesperson Badra Masoud said she was not aware of outstanding payments and added that, at any rate, the firm should contact Tanesco and not anyone else even if there were any delayed transactions. She added: “We have paid them…I wonder where these new claims are coming from. They (Songas) should come to Tanesco if there is any kind of delays or outstanding payments.”
She would not reveal the amount paid and instead turned on our journalist, saying: “You should be patriotic to your country since Tanesco is for you Tanzanians.”
Tanesco Acting Managing Director Felchismi Mramba was unavailable for comment.
In another development, the Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (Ewura) yesterday expressed concern over the chronic problems at Tanesco, including mounting debts arising from bills for running expensive thermal power.
Ewura Spokesperson Titus Kaguo said Tanesco was operating as it did in the 1970s, when Tanzania had a smaller population and fewer power consumers. “Tanesco needs heavy investment and better management,” he added. “We hope the government is working on ways to rescue this power firm.”
Ewura had apparently sought to assist Tanesco in exchange for a slight increase in power tariffs but Tanesco reportedly withdrew the application prematurely.
Seventeen regions are currently served by the national grid and the demand, as of yesterday, was 800 megawatts. If Songas were to take away 180mw, which is 22.5 per cent of the total generated, regions connected to the national grid would face an acute power shortage.
Songas sent out a distress signal in June last year threatening to switch off its plant if Tanesco failed to settle a $30 million (about Sh48 billion) bill for services provided that year.

Substance in Oscar's bedroom revealed

Johannesburg - Oscar Pistorius's representatives have named the substance found in his bedroom after the shooting death of his girlfriend as Testis compositum, and say it is an herbal remedy used "in aid of muscle recovery".
A product called Testis compositum is also marketed as a sexual enhancer, good for lack of stamina.
Some online retailers advertise oral and injectable forms as testosterone boosters and say it can aid sexual performance.
Police said during Pistorius's bail hearing that they found needles in his bedroom along with the substance, which they initially named as testosterone.

Prosecutors later withdrew that statement identifying the substance and said it had been sent for laboratory tests and couldn't be named until those tests were completed.

Pistorius family spokesperson Lunice Johnston said in an e-mail to The Associated Press on Wednesday that the athlete's lawyers had confirmed that the substance is Testis compositum.

In court last week, Pistorius's defense lawyer Barry Roux said the substance was not banned by sports authorities, but it had been unclear what it was and what the exact name was.

A product called Testis Compositum is made by Biologische Heilmittel Heel GmbH, based in Baden-Baden, Germany.

The company website says it is one of the world's leading makers of homeopathic combination medications.

A US subsidiary, Heel USA, markets the product in tablet form only and spokesperson Joan Sullivan said she didn't know if injectable versions are sold in other countries.

Heel USA's website says the product provides temporary relief for men's "sexual weakness" and lack of stamina.

The US-sold tablets contain 23 ingredients, including pig testicles, pig heart, pig embryo and pig adrenal gland, cortisone, ginseng and other botanicals.

It also contains several minerals, according to a list Sullivan provided.

Charles Yesalis, a Penn State professor emeritus and expert on steroid use in sports, said animal steroids likely wouldn't have an athletic performance-enhancing effect unless taken in huge quantities.

Even so, he said many elite athletes would be wary of using such supplements because they can be laced with banned substances and few would want to risk it.

The company website listed a South African subsidiary as ModHomCo, based in Centurion, near Pretoria. That company couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

Pistorius was charged with premeditated murder in the 14 February shooting death of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

He says he shot her by accident after mistaking her for an intruder in his home. Prosecutors allege he intended to kill her.