BOT FUNDS MISAPPROPRIATION SCANDAL: Govt task force targets media, whistleblowers

THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam

OFFICIAL investigations of an anonymous email document detailing alleged fraud at the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) now appear to be focussed on identifying the whistleblowers and newspapers that leaked the information to the public, government officials said yesterday.

The officials, who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the probe, revealed that a lot of resources in the enquiry are targeting the media and authors of the document, rather than getting to the bottom of the actual allegations listed therein.

It is understood that a task force comprising members from the country’s security and intelligence system has been formed to look into the matter of the controversial email, the contents of which have been the subject of much parliamentary debate over the past couple of weeks.

The task force is reportedly led by a top economic crimes expert from Tanzania Intelligence and Security Service (TISS).

But according to a government source familiar with the task force’s terms of reference, the ongoing probe is concentrating more and more on trying to trace the origin of the widely circulating email, as well as newspapers that extensively reported the matter, instead of verifying the contents.

’’Since misappropriating funds at the BoT is a criminal act and a very serious matter, that should certainly be the main focus of any inquiry,’’ said the source.

The Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bill 2007, passed by parliament in April this year, contains a number of provisions for the protection of whistleblowers as a key component in the fight against graft.

But in this case, our sources tell us that ’’it seems some people in government are more interested in why newspapers are writing these things, than going after the real criminals who actually did embezzle millions of dollars from the BoT.’’

The latest probe comes amid heightened public calls for a formal criminal investigation into the allegations of about $200m (approx. 250bn/-) being misappropriated from a key BoT foreign exchange account, and not just a ’’mere audit.’’

But according to one of our sources: ’’There are apparent attempts by some influential people in government to dismiss these allegations against the BoT as blatant lies and fabrications, sponsored by opposition parties and some sections of the media.’’

It is also feared within some government circles that delays in carrying out the planned special audit of the BoT’s external commercial debt account could give the alleged culprits enough time to cover their tracks.

’’As more time passes, it becomes legally more difficult to apprehend the culprits. They could hide their ill-gotten wealth through various money laundering activities, like transferring properties to different companies,’’ said another source, also from within the government.

The source pointed out that since the government already has certain key facts concerning the allegations, ’’it doesn’t need to wait for the special audit.’’

Financial experts have also underlined the fact that although not all the allegations against the BoT and Governor Daudi Ballali may be true, there are some ’’well-known facts and leads’’ that government law enforcement agencies can investigate.

’’Between the Bank of Tanzania, the Treasury and local banks, they know exactly where the money went...it is not easy to hide tens of millions of US dollars,’’ said one expert.

The Minister for Finance, Ms Zakia Meghji, announced in parliament last week that the process of picking an international auditor for the special audit on BoT is to be concluded before the end of the year.

The reassurance from Ms Meghji came after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) made yet another urgent call for the speeding up of Tanzanian government investigations into the latest BoT funds misappropriation scandal.

The controversial email document alleges that BoT governor Ballali personally facilitated the funds misappropriation, in collaboration with an elitist group of local businessmen.

The IMF executive board demanded that the pending probe into fishy goings-on within the BoT be conducted ’’in a timely manner’’ and ’’in line with best international standards.’’