Tanzanian Association Oslo

V.G Chavda:

The questions build up

-Is his PI status still in force?
-If so, how has he escaped justice for so long?

THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam

TOP judicial authorities in the country appear to have hit a brick wall in their efforts to see that a 1996 deportation order against notorious businessman Vidyadhar Girdharlal (V.G) Chavda is enforced, THISDAY can reveal today.

It has been learnt that apart from the High Court, the Attorney General’s Chambers has also been pushing in vain to ensure that the man implicated in a massive Bank of Tanzania (BoT) funds misuse scandal remains prohibited from entering and staying in the country, as officially directed no less than 11 years ago.

Government documents seen by THISDAY show that on May 5 last year, the AG’s Chambers sent a written reminder to the Director of Immigration Services in the Ministry of Home Affairs of the need to enforce a 2004 ruling on Chavda issued by the then Jaji Kiongozi at the High Court, Hamisi Msumi.

Judge Msumi’s ruling explicitly directed the Immigration department to issue Chavda with ’’the relevant immigration document which will entitle the applicant (Chavda) to legally stay in Tanzania until the cases filed against him are completed, or for an aggregate period of two years, which ever precedes the other.’’

This two-year period was supposed to end on March 11 last year, after which according to the High Court ruling - Chavda would have no legal status to continue staying in the country whether the cases against him were concluded or not.

And the AG´s letter of May last year, signed on his behalf by state attorney Donald Chidowu, called on the Immigration department to take appropriate measures to implement the order, saying in part:

’’Since the ruling date was 11th March 2004, then the time for stay in Tanzania has elapsed, and given the fact that the said Chavda didn’t appeal against the decision, now act according to law, on this issue, in compliance with any other necessary procedures.’’

The Indian national was declared a prohibited immigrant (PI) and deported from the country in 1996 after being inexorably linked to various improprieties related to the BoT’s debt conversion programme (DCP), in a well-publicised scam bearing striking similarities with the present-day BoT external payment arrears (EPA) scandal.

Official government records show that Chavda was heavily incriminated in the course of a parliamentary probe into the allegations of widespread fraud and embezzlement of hundreds of millions of shillings under DCP auspices.

The DCP affair and Chavda’s alleged involvement dominated media headlines and generated much public debate for a long time - until it eventually fizzled out.

Fresh queries made by THISDAY to immigration department spokesman Abdi Ijimbo regarding Chavda’s current immigration status have remained unanswered to date.

Under the country’s laws, a prohibited immigrant (PI) is declared via section 10 of the Immigration Act No. 7 of 1995.

The legislation states that: ’’A person whose entry or continued presence in Tanzania is, in the opinion of the Minister (for Home Affairs) or Director (of Immigration Services), undesirable, can be declared by the minister or the director to be a prohibited immigrant, except that every declaration of the director under this paragraph shall be subject to confirmation by the minister, whose decision shall be final.’’

In 2002, the city-based Law Associates advocates firm sent a written ’legal opinion’ to the government saying V.G Chavda - already declared a PI - then proceeded to violate a ’visitor’s pass’ given to him under section 13 (1) of the 1997 Immigration Regulations to ’’answer a subpoena or summons to attend a court proceeding’’ in the country.

The pass said to have been given to Chavda was only to attend the court session and give evidence in a particular case, and did not extend to engaging in any prescribed trade, business, profession or other occupation, the law firm stated, adding:

’’The said person (Chavda) was only given pass to enter Tanzania for the purpose of giving evidence to a particular case. The pass was only for a period of one month. While here in Tanzania, the said person has breached the provision of immigration regulations.’’