Donald Lukele
Kisesa Member of Parliament, Luhaga Mpina (CCM), has requested the Parliament to urge the government through the Prime Minister, Kassim Majaliwa, to dismiss all employees of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, from the minister to the office sweeper.
Mpina proposed this action in Parliament while contributing to the debate on the estimates of revenue and expenditure for the ministry for the fiscal year 2024/25.
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He said one of the areas that has been problematic in the ministry is residents living on the periphery of conservation areas being framed, tortured, their livestock seized, and some even killed.
“There has been a tendency for residents living in the areas surrounding conservation areas to be framed, their livestock seized, tortured, and some even killed by employees in our conservation areas.
“I have already presented evidence here in Parliament, and the Prime Minister issued 12 directives, none of which have been implemented.
The harassment continues for our citizens living in the areas surrounding conservation areas,” he said.
Mpina also mentioned that even in the report of the Parliamentary Committee on Land, Natural Resources, and Tourism presented to Parliament last Friday, it highlights the magnitude of the issue of residents being framed.
“Furthermore, the Parliamentary Committee itself quoted court cases to show frustration with the actions of residents living near conservation areas being framed.
“Now, if the directives of the Prime Minister have been ignored and our complaints as MPs, then I urge my fellow MPs today (yesterday) to give a lesson.
I urge today that we demand the government through the Prime Minister to dismiss all employees of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism from the minister to the office sweeper as a lesson,” Mpina emphasized.
Furthermore, the MP suggested that Parliament should establish a committee to investigate all conservation areas on the periphery and villages to stop such incidents.
Mpina questioned why the ministry remained silent on the incident of a crocodile that was killed by a hunter from the United States who claimed it was the longest in the world.
“We have been seeking tourist attractions, but if we indeed had a crocodile that was the longest in the world, why did we allow it to be killed? Why didn’t we build a cage and create a tourist center there?
“But since this incident, no authority has ever come forward to deny that this crocodile was not the longest in the world.
This shows that there have been conspiracies by employees within the ministry to sabotage the nation because it is clear they knew this was the longest crocodile,” he said.
He demanded action be taken against all involved, and an investigation be conducted to determine what happened for a crocodile with a length of 493.8 centimeters, nearly five meters, to be killed under the permit of a common crocodile.
“Waziri (Minister) and TAWA (Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority), why did they allow this crocodile with a length of 493.8 centimeters, almost five meters, to be killed by a hunter who appeared in the media claiming to have hunted the longest crocodile in the world and later skinned it?
“Was this crocodile as valuable as other crocodiles, did our country have no use for this crocodile?” Mpina questioned.
Njombe Member of Parliament, Deo Mwanyika (CCM), called on the government to review logging permits issued to investors.
He said currently, there is logging that does not consider environmental conservation, and citizens do not benefit from their forests because these investors have been setting prices themselves.
